THE Campaign being over, and Councils not yet begun, the World is very much at quiet; nor can I find News enough to fill a Letter: But to keep up our usual Correspondence, I send you an Account of an old Latin Poet, very little known, tho' as worthy your Acquaintance, as many of those who [Page 2] are in Credit. He lay buried in the German Libraries, not heard of in the World, till Poggius Publish'd him from some old Manuscripts found there; and tho'¹ Burde Cotzus, thinks Lucian consulted this Poet when he wrote his little Treatise of Astrologie; tho' Julius Firmizus is² ac­cus'd as an ungrateful Plagiary, for not acknowledging from whom he Transcrib'd the chiefest parts of his Books; yet there is no good Evi­dence, that any one Writer menti­on'd this Author before Poggius. Pli­ny is suppos'd to speak of him as a³ Mathematician, and Gerbertus, as an⁴ Astrologer; but concerning the [Page 3] Poet, there is as dead a silence as if he had never been; nor can his greatest Admirers find any Character of him in old Writers.

Yet it must be own'd, that he is an Author of some considerable Age; for the Manuscripts which Poggius, Bonincontrius, Scaliger, and Franciscus Junius us'd, were ancient: Tanaquil Fa­ber, Spanhemius, and the severest Cri­ticks allow him to be as old as Theo­dosius the Great, and pretend to find some particular Phrases in him, which are certain Characters of that Time.

Others, who believe they have ve­ry good Reasons to place him higher, find it very difficult to account for this universal silence: What they offer, is either bare May-be and Shift, and scarce ever amounts to a tolerable Reason: 'Tis true, they say, he is not mention'd by Ovid in his⁵ Ca­talogue [Page 4] of Poets, and no wonder, since he did not begin to write before the⁶ Banishment of Ovid, and Pub­lished nothing before his Death; Perhaps he was one of those Young Men,

or his Fame did not reach so far as Pontus: Otherwise they are confident there are too many Graces in his Poem to be neglected; at least, the singularity of his Subject would have deserved to be taken notice of, as well as that of⁸ Gratius. But why Quintilian doth not propose him to his Orator, tho' he encourages him [Page 5] to⁹ read Macer and Lucretius, and ¹ affirms, that a competent skill in Astronomy is necessary to make him perfect in his Profession? Why the following Philologers never use his Authority, tho' it might very often have been pertinently cited by Gelli­us and Macrobius? Why the Gramma­rians and Mythologists, seem to be altogether unacquainted with his Writings? They confess these are Questions not easie to be answer'd.

Of this Poet, who is acknowledged by all Parties to have lain very long unknown, and about whom, since he first appear'd in the World, so many Controversies have risen, I am now to give you an account.

His Name is commonly said to be Marcus Manilius, which in some Co­pies of his Poem is shortned into [Page 6] Manlius, in others softned into Mal­lius: This variation is inconsiderable, and the common fault of unaccurate Transcribers; but² Bonincontrius af­firms, that the Title of his very Ancient Copies was, C. Manilii Poetae illustris Astronomicon; and that he had seen a Medal, in which was the Fi­gure of a Man, but in a Foreign Habit, with a Sphere plac'd near his Head, and this Inscription, C. MA­NILI. ³ Lilius Gyraldus mentions another of the same stamp; But that these Medals belong'd to this Poet, may be as easily deny'd, as 'tis affirm'd, or rather, as 'tis con­jectured: However all Parties agree, that the most Ancient Copies con­stantly bear the Title of Manilius; but whether the Books of Poggius and Bonincontrius, which call him [Page 7] Caius, or those of Scaliger and others, in which we find Marcus written, are to be follow'd, is submitted to every Man's Discretion; the Matter is not of any Consequence, nor a fit Sub­ject for Dispute, because impossible to be determin'd: Tho' if Conjecture may be admitted, I should fancy that it is more probable a Transcriber may err, when he puts M. before Manilius, than when he writes a C. be­cause in the former case, the Sound of the following Word, which is the most considerable in the Title, and consequently the chiefest in his Thoughts, may pervert him; but in the latter, He hath no temptation to mistake. This M. or C. Manilius, was born a Roman, and liv'd in Rome when Rome was in her Glory; com­manding the biggest part of the known World, and full of the greatest Men that ever any time produc'd: For the [Page 8] same Age that saw Manilius enjoy'd Varro, Lucretius, Cicero, Caesar, Virgil, Varius, Horace, and (to close the Catalogue) Augustus. In the begin­ning of this Astronomical Poem that Emperour is⁴ invok'd, that very Emperour who was the⁵ adopted Son of Julius Caesar, who⁶ beat Bru­tus and Cassius at Philippi, ⁷ overthrew Pompey the Great's Son,⁸ who sent Tiberius to Rhodes, ⁹ who lost three Legions in Germany under the Com­mand of Varus; who¹ routed Antho­ny and Cleopatra at Actium, and sav'd the Roman Empire by turning that overgrown dissolute Republick into a well regulated Monarchy. Here are so many Characters, that the Per­son cannot be mistaken, not one of them agreeing to any but the first [Page 9] Great Augustus. So that this Author liv'd in that Age to which He pre­tends by so many very particular Cir­cumstances, or else He is a most no­torious Cheat, and one of the greatest Impostors in the World.

It seems² Tanaquil Faber thought him to be so, since without giving any Reason He brings him down as low as the time of Theodosius: ³ Vos­sius was once of the same Opinion, having observed, as He then thought, some Measures, Words and Phrases peculiar to that Age, and therefore He concludes against Scaliger, that Julius Firmicus did not follow Manili­us, but Manilius wrote in Verse what Firmicus had published in Prose under the Reign of Constantine the Great: But upon second Reading this⁴ Cri­tick alter'd his first Sentiments, and [Page 10] allows him to be as ancient as the Po­et himself desires to be thought. ⁵ Gassendus often quotes him, and al­ways sets him after Firmicus, as may be seen in many places of his Writings; but gives no reason why he constantly observes that order: But Gevartius, who had study'd and design'd to pub­lish Notes upon this Author, says in a Letter to Mr. Cambden, ⁶ ‘I have been long acquainted with this Wri­ter, and know him well, but can­not, with Scaliger and other learned Criticks, allow him to be as anci­ent as Augustus, for in my Notes I will demonstrate that he liv'd in the Age of Theodosius and his Sons Ar­cadius and Honorius, and that he was the same with Manlius Theodo­rus, [Page 11] upon whose Consulship Claudi­an writes a Panegyrick, in which he mentions his Astronomicon.’ The same thing he asserts in his Comments upon⁷ Statius, and promises to do Wonders in his⁸ Electa upon this Subject; what his performance was I do not find taken notice of by any of the Criticks, nor am I concern'd for it, being certain that he fail'd in his Attempt, because it was ridiculous and rash: Yet the learn'd Ezechiel Spanhemius endeavours to support this Conjecture of Gevartius, ⁹ and tells us, that sub Armis, a Phrase familiar to Manilius, as lib. 1. v. 795.

[Page 12] Lib. 4. v. 656.

And in another place,

was us'd in the time of Theodosius, as appears by the following passage in that Emperour's Code, ¹ Quicunque sub Armis Militiae munus Comitatense su­bierunt. Scaliger himself unwarily gave a very great advantage to this Opinion, when he² affirm'd, that the word Decanus, which Mani­lius uses, was brought from the Camp, and that a Sign which govern'd ten Degrees was call'd Decanus, because [Page 13] an Officer who commanded ten Men in the Army had the same Title: But³ Salmatius, who discover'd the Mistake, (for Decanus was not heard of in the Roman Camp before the time of Constantine the Great) hath so well corrected it, or rather ⁴ Huetius hath given so good an Ac­count of that Word, that tho' an Argument drawn from it may be strong against the Critick, it will ne­ver be of any force against the Author. It is almost needless to mention the Exceptions of those Criticks who think his Stile impure, or, as they please to speak, too barbarous for the Age he pretends to; Indeed⁵ Gyraldus en­deavours by this very Argument to prove he was no Roman born: But ⁶ Scaliger laughs at him for his At­tempt, [Page 14] tells him that he does not di­stinguish between Idiotisms and Bar­barisms, and that Vitruvius (to whom he should have added Lucre­tius) might be call'd barbarous as well as he:⁷ Franciscus Junius com­mends the propriety of his Language, ⁸ Salmatius and⁹ Huetius have appro­ved many passages which lesser Cri­ticks thought to be impure; And the accurate Vossius, ¹ after he had studi­ed and considered him well, found nothing in him inconsistent with the Age of Augustus, and the Politeness of his Court. Indeed most of the Instances that are produc'd upon this head, do not fasten on the Author him­self, but on the Transcribers and Pub­lishers of his Writings. There ought to be a new Edition of his Astrono­micon, and I do not despair of seeing [Page 15] one which will have a pure genuine Text, and free that Text from many of his Interpreters Comments, espe­cially from the Notes of the misera­ble wretched² Fayus.

You see, Sir, I have brought this diffus'd Controversie within a very narrow Compass; Tanaquil Faber and Gassendus keep their (if they had any) Reasons to themselves. Their Au­thority I confess had been perswasive, had they considered, and after a fair hearing determin'd the Controversie; but an incident declaration, and an unweigh'd Sentence concerning the Age of any Writer ought not to be submitted to, but appeal'd from: And therefore if I can shew the Ob­servation of Spanhemius to be uncon­cluding, and refute the bold Conje­ctures of Gevartius, I shall leave Ma­nilius [Page 16] in possession of that Age, which he so often, and with so much assurance claims. And here I am sure we should not have been troubled with Spanhemius's Obser­vation, had he been pleas'd to consider, that sub Armis, and sub Armis Militiae, being very different from one another, might be us'd in very different Ages of the Empire; and that he argues very ill, who says, the one was known in the Time of Theodosius, and therefore the other was not common in the Court of Augustus: 'Tis certain that it was, for Virgil (whom Manilius often imitates) hath

[Page 17] And in another place, ‘—Ludunt Belli simulachra sub Armis.’ And this Virgil himself borrow'd from Ennius, who says, ‘Ter me sub Armis malim vitam cernere.’ I could produce more Authorities, were not these sufficient to secure Ma­nilius from Spanhemius's Observation.

But Gevartius, as he is bolder, so he is much more unhappy in his Conjectures; he fixes upon the Man, and says this Manilius is Mallius Theo­dorus, celebrated by the Poet Claudian; for the Author of this Astronomicon, is in many of the old Copies call'd Mallius, and this Mallius Theodorus, was a good Astronomer, and a Writer of great Industry and Repu­tation: [Page 18] But did Gevartius ever meet with the Astronomicon, under the Title of Fl. Mallius Theodorus? Or of Fl. Mallius and not alwaies of C. or M. Manlius, Mallius or Manilius? Doth Claudian com­mend the Poetry of his Consul, or men­tion his Acquaintance with the Muses? or could a Poet forget, or not celebrate that Talent which he himself must look upon as a very great Perfection, and the Age would have highly valued, had he been the Author of this Poem? Doth he say he wrote Books of A­stronomy, knew the Depths of Astrolo­gy, and was admitted into the Coun­cils of the Stars? Here was a large Field for that luxuriant Wit to have wanton'd in, and it cannot be thought he would have conceal'd the deserts of his Patron when he study'd to com­mend him: But instead of this he praises his Justice, Integrity, Cle­mency and Honor; he extols his E­loquence, [Page 19] and prefers the sweetness of it before all the delicate Charms of Poetry and Musick.

And tho' all the Muses are concern'd for him, and busie in his Service, yet he is devoted to none of them but Ura­ [...]ie, who assisted him in his Astronomi­cal Diversions.

[Page 20] Gevartius very well observes that this Consul Mallius was an Astronomer.

That he publish'd some admir'd Books

But how doth it appear that Astro­nomy was his Subject, when Claudi­an himself tells us it was the Origine and Constitution of the World? He re­presents him as well vers'd in all the several Hypotheses of the Natural and Moral Philosophers, acquainted both with the Physicks and Ethicks of the Greeks, and able to discourse of their Opinions very properly, and very e­legantly in Latin.

But when he speaks of his Writings he says he describ'd the Origine and Disposition of the World,⁴⁴ and gave [Page 22] very convincing proofs of his own Wit, Capacity, and Judgment, by his exact account of the beautiful Order, and regular Contrivance of that won­derful Machine.

From these Verses and other passages in Claudian, as

it may be inferr'd that this Consul [Page 23] Mallius, was as to Natural Philoso­phy a Stoick, and built his World according to the Hypothesis of that Sect, and therefore wrote something very like what we find at large in the first Book, and hinted at in several passa­ges of the other Books of Manilius. But this being the least part of our Author, and subservient to his great­er and general design, it must not be suppos'd that Claudian should enlarge only upon this, and leave his whole Astrology untoucht; unless we think Claudian as ridiculous as that Painter would be, who being to fill his Can­vas with a noble Family should draw a single Servant, or paint only a Fin­ger or a Nail when he had a large beau­tiful Body to represent.

I have been the more particular in this matter, because Gevartius pretends to demonstration, tho' to confute his conjecture it had been sufficient only [Page 24] to observe, that it is the most ridi­culous thing in the World to ima­gine that Mallius a Man well known both for his personal Endowments and publick Employments, who had been Governour of several Provinces, and at last Consul should publish a Treatise under his own Name, and yet in almost every Page of the Book endeavour to perswade his Readers it was written four hundred years be­fore. For it must be granted that the Prince whom he¹ invokes in the beginning of his Poem, who is stiled Patriae Princepsque Paterque, who is deify'd whilst² alive, and (not to repeat the other particulars I have al­ready reckon'd up) whose³ Horos­cope was Capricorn, was the first Great Augustus, and therefore there is no need of calling in the Authori­ties [Page 25] of⁴ Horace, ⁵ and⁶ Sue­tonius to prove it.

This last Character puts me in mind of another Objection that may be drawn from F. Harduin's⁷ Observation, for he says that Suetoni­us was himself deceiv'd, and hath de­ceiv'd all those who have thought Ca­pricorn was concern'd in the Nativity of Augustus: For if this be true all the Pretences of Manilius are ruin'd; but since that Writer doth not back his Assertion with any Reasons, I shall not submit to his bare Authority, nor wast my time in guessing what Arguments he may rely on, being not bold enough to conjecture what the daring Author may produce. Having thus fixt the Age of this Author, and prov'd him to have [Page 26] liv'd in the time of Augustus Caesar, I shall venture farther to affirm that he was born under the Reign of that Emperour, not only a Roman, but of illustrious Extraction, being a branch of that noble Family the Manilij, who so often fill'd the Consul's Chair, and supply'd the best and greatest Offices in the Roman Commonwealth. And here I must oppose many of the Cri­ticks, and be unassisted by the rest: For⁸ Scaliger confesses, that from his own Writings, it cannot be known what Countryman he was, and no other Authors give us any Informa­tion. Bonincontrius and Gyraldus en­deavour to prove from the Medal already mention'd, that he was no Roman; the Learned⁹ Isaac Vossius thinks he was a Syrian, and all who [Page 27] look upon him to be the same with that Manilius mention'd by Pliny, Nat. Hist. lib. 35. cap. 17. say he was a Slave: Only Petrus Crinitus ¹ affirms, he was Nobly Born, and Mr. Tristan will² have him to be that Manilius, of whom Pliny gives a very Honourable Character, in the Tenth Book and Second Chapter of his Natural History; where he says, He was of Senatorian Dignity, an excel­lent Scholar, and (If we believe Mr. Tristan) a very good Astronomer. But since Crinitus doth not prove what he says, and Mr. Tristan but conje­ctures at best, and upon Examinati­on, will be found to be very much mistaken in his Conjectures, there­fore I cannot expect any assistance from either of these Authors. Now it is not certain that the Gentleman [Page 28] whom Pliny speaks of in the Second Chapter of his Tenth Book was Nam'd Manilius. Copies differ, and in the M. SS. of Salmasius ³ he is call'd Mamilius: Pliny doth not say one word of his skill in Astronomy; he only⁴ affirms, ‘That he was the first of all the Romans who wrote concerning the Phoenix, that never any Man saw it feed, that in Ara­bia it is Sacred to the Sun, that it lives 660 Years, and that with the Life of this Bird is consummated the Conversion of the Great Year, in which the Stars return again to their first points, and give significa­tions of the same Seasons as at the beginning:’ And all this any one may write who is in an entire Igno­rance of the Courses and Influence of the Stars: But when Mr. Tristan [Page 29] farther observes that Pliny insinuates, besides a particular respect, a kind of Intimacy and Acquaintance between this Manilius and himself, he gives us a very convincing Argument against his own conjecture: for there is good reason to believe this Manilius the Po­et dy'd before Augustus, and therefore could not be intimate with Pliny.

To set this whole matter in its due light, I shall, as the learned and in­genious Sr. Edward Shirburn hath al­ready done in his Preface to the Sphere of Manilius take a view of those, who have been by the name of Manilius deliver'd down to Posterity as Men of Letters, and then consider which of all those, or whether any one of them was this Manilius the Poet.

Of that Manilius whom Pliny men­tions in the second Chapter of his tenth Book I have already said enough; and about that Manilius, whom Varro [Page 30] ⁵ cites, I shall not be concern'd, there being no ground to think he was the Author of this Poem.⁶ ‘Pli­ny lib. 35. cap. 17. tells us of one Manilius surnam'd Antiochus, who with Publius Syrus, and Staberius E­ros were brought to Rome, all three of Servile Condition, but persons of good Literature. His words are these, Pedes Venalium trans mare advect­orum [Creta] denotare instituerunt Ma­jores; Talemque Publium [Syrum] mi­micae Scenae conditorem, et Astrologiae consobrinum ejus Manilium Antiochum, item Grammaticae Staberium Erotem, eadem navi advectos videre Proavi. Our Ancestors us'd to mark with Chalk the Feet of those Slaves who were brought over from beyond Sea to be sold; And such an one was Publius [Syrus] the Founder of [Page 31] the Mimick Scene, and his Cousin German Manilius Antiochus of Astro­logy, and Staberius Eros of Gram­mar; whom our great Grandfathers saw in that manner brought over in one and the same Ship: This Mani­lius Laurentius Bonincontrius (who near two ages agoe commented on our Author) conceives the same with Manilius who wrote this Astro­nomical Poem, to confirm which opi­nion he produces the evidence of a Silver Medal in his possession where­on was the figure of a Man, in an Exotick Habit with a Sphere plac'd near his Head, and this Inscription MANILI: The same is affirm'd says Lilius Gyraldus by Stephanus Dul­cinus, and the said Gyraldus farther assures us that a familiar Friend of his, one Nicolaus Trapolinus, had an­other Medal of the like Stamp and Inscription.’

[Page 32] ‘But against this opinion of Bonin­contrius and Gyraldus, Scaliger oppo­ses a double Argument, one drawn from the seeming inveracity of that suppos'd Evidence; no such Medal being at this day to be found in the Cabinets of any, no not the most curious Antiquaries; the other from the reason of Time, for Manilius An­tiochus being brought to Rome in the beginning of Sylla's days (for he was brought in the same Ship with Sta­berius Eros, who open'd his Gram­mar School in Rome whilst Sylla was alive) must needs, if he were the Author of this Poem have been 120 Years old when he began to write, this piece being written in the latter years of Augustus. Besides, the Author in the Proem of this work wishes for long life to compleat his intend­ed Poem, and therefore certainly he was not of that Age, it being ridi­culous [Page 33] for a Man to wish for long life, when he is at the Extream al­ready.’

‘The same Pliny, lib. 36. cap. 10. speaks of one Manilius a Mathemati­cian, who when the Obelisk which Augustus erected in the Campus Mar­tius for finding out the Hours of the day by the Shadow of the Sun, with the Increase or Decrease of the Days and Nights, plac'd a guilded Ball, Cujus Vertice Umbra colligeretur in se­metipsam, alia atque alia incrementa ja­culantem Apice, ratione (ut ferunt) à capite hominis intellecta, says Pliny, who commends the design.’

‘To this Person Scaliger conceives this work may with fairer probability be ascrib'd than to the former; which Opinion is by divers other judicious Men embrac'd.’

‘The excellently learn'd Isaac Vos­sius conceives yet, that the Manilius [Page 34] Antiochus, and the Manilius Mathema­ticus before mention'd are not two distinct Persons, but one and the same under different Titles and Ap­pellations, and the very Author of the Poem we now publish, whose particular Sentiments upon this Subject, and Arguments confir­ming the same, he was pleas'd not long since to impart to me, by his most obliging Letter, in answer to some Queries by me propounded in one of mine to him upon occasion of my intended publication of this piece, which for the Readers satis­faction, I shall here make publick, tho' not in his own words, yet as near as may be in his own Sense.’

‘And first in answer to Scaliger's Argument drawn from Reason to Time, against Manilius Antiochus, up­on the supposition of Staberius Eros (one of the Three before mention'd) set open his Grammar School in the [Page 35] time of Sylla ninety five years before the death of Augustus; and that there­fore Manilius could not probably be (according to Scaliger's Computati­on) less than 120 Years old at the time when this Poem was written; he urges by way of reply, that Su­etonius (from whom Scaliger takes the ground of his Argument) doth not say that Staberius Eros open'd his School in Sylla's time, but that he taught gratis the Children of those who in Sylla's time were proscrib'd. The Words of Suetonius are these, Sunt qui tradunt tanta eum (Staberi­um) honestate praeditum, ut temporibus Syllanis Proscriptorum liberos gratis, et sine mercede ulla in Disciplina receperit. How long that was after the times of Proscription will be needless here to declare; and that Manilius was not so old as Scaliger conceives, when this piece was written, may be made out from this, that he was the Cou­sin [Page 36] German of Publius Syrus, who that he was brought a young Boy to his Patron, Macrobius affirms, from whom likewise, and from the Ver­ses of Laberius it may be collected, that he was but a Youth when he came upon the Stage against Laberi­us, which was but a little before the death of Julius Caesar and Laberius al­so; to whom he succeeded on the Mimick Stage in the second year of 184 Olympiad, that is in the Year of Rome 711, as Eusebius testifies. And therefore seeing it is, manifest that Manilius publish'd this Poem soon after the Varian Defeat, which happened in the Year 762 of Rome, it is as evident likewise that between the Youth or Adolescence of Manilius, and the time wherein he wrote this piece, there could not pass above one and fifty Years, and consequent­ly there is no reason to assign so [Page 37] great an Age to Manilius, as Scali­ger here doth, since perhaps he was not seventy years old when he had finish'd this his Astronomical Poem.’

‘As to what Scaliger subjoyns touch­ing Manilius his wish for long life toge­ther with a cheerful old Age, and the Inference he thence makes that he could not reasonably be thought to be old then, who wish'd he might live to be so. The Argument is but weak, for Senium is one thing, and Senium An­nosum is another; Nor doth he sim­ply wish for Vitam Annosam, but Vi­tam Annosam quae conjuncta sit cum molli Senecta, which may be wish'd for even by those who are very old.’

‘As for the name of Antiochus, he seems to have taken it from the fa­mous Philosopher Antiochus Ascaloni­ta, often mention'd by Cicero, Plu­tarch, Sextus Empiricus, and others, whose School not only Cicero, but [Page 38] Varro, Brutus, and divers others are said to have frequented, and in all probability this our Manilius also, as being not only of the same Nation, but happily born in the same Town (Ascalon.) So that it may seem no wonder if after the manner of those times, he took upon him the Name of his worthy Tutor and Instructor. For that he was a Syrian is not only manifest from his Consanguinity with Publius Mimus, but may like­wise be collected from the Title or Inscription of this work, which is an ancient and excellent Manuscript in the Possession of Vossius is this M. MALLII POENI ASTRONO­MICON DIVO OCTAVIO QUI­RINO AUG. That the Phaenicians were by the Romans called POENI is manifest out of Horace, Cicero apud Nonium, and our Author in this ve­ry Poem; he concludes therefore than [Page 39] this our Manilius, or (as he is rather pleased to call him) Manlius was a Phaenician, and in all probability Na­tive of the same Town as Antiochus his Tutor, whose name he assum'd.’

‘From this Dedication of his Work to Augustus, by the Name of Quirinus, as the Inscription shews, will appear the Error of those, who who imagine the same to be Dedi­cated to Tiberius, or some later Ro­man Emperour: And the Reason of attributing the Name of Quirinus to Augustus, may be made clear from the Words of Suetonius, Censentibus quibusdam Romulum appellari oportere quasi et ipsum conditorem Urbis, &c. Dion likewise tells us [...], That Au­gustus Caesar extremely desir'd to be call'd Romulus: and Joannes Philadelphensis (Scripto de Mensibus in Aug.) [...] [Page 40] Octa­vianus Son of Octavius was after his great Victories honoured with divers Names, for by some he was called Quiri­nus, as another Romulus, &c.’

‘As to that Manilius stiled by Pliny Mathematicus, he conceives that titu­lar distinction to make no difference in the Person, but that he is the same with the former, further adding, Om­nino existimo et illum quoque de nostro Manilio accipi debere. And whereas Salmasius affirms that the name Man­lius or Manilius is not to be found in that place of Pliny in any ancient Ma­nuscripts, he makes it appear that Salmasius is extreamly mistaken by the testimony of several antient Ma­nuscript Copies of Pliny in his Pos­session, one of which was written a­bove 8 or 900 Years agoe, in all which the Word Manlius is found, [Page 41] though with some small difference in writing of the name. Nor doth he think the name of Marcus prefixd to Manilius ought to be scrupled at, up­on the Account that none of the Man­lian Family after the 360th Year from the building of Rome could or did use that Praenomen, seeing the prohi­bition as Cicero intimates is only to be understood of the Patrician Race, Now that this Manilius, or (as he calls him) Manlius was before his Manumission a Slave, not only the place of Pliny already cited, but the very Agnomen of Antiochus sufficiently demonstrates, for as much as a Greek Agnomen joyn'd to a Roman Name is always a most certain Token of a Servile Condition.’

Thus far Sir Edward Shirburn, who is very much inclin'd to rest satisfied with this rational discourse of the in­comparable Vossius, and thinks others [Page 42] should be so too; but upon examina­tion it will appear that Scaliger's Ob­jections are still in force, and that Vos­sius's his reasonings are all to little pur­pose. It must be granted that the Agnomen Antiochus proves that Manilius to be of Servile Condition, tho' there is no need of this Argument, since Pli­ny in very express Terms asserts that he is so: Tis likewise true that that Manilius was a Syrian, being a near Kinsman to Publius Syrus, and brought to Italy in the same Ship with him: But that that Manilius the Syrian was the same with Manilius the Poet, is a Question that still returns, and will not, I fear, be determin'd by the Title of that ancient and excellent Manuscript of Vossius: For if instead of M. MALLII POENI, we read M. MALLII POETAE, which is found in other Manuscripts, (and every body knows there is so little difference in the [Page 43] traits of the Letters of those two words in ancient Copies, that they may ve­ry easily by Ignorant Transcribers be mistaken for one another) then the Evidence drawn from this Inscription is lost: Besides that Title is not to be regarded, it not being written by the Author but affixt by some heedless Copyer of the Poem: For it is Divo Octavio, whereas Augustus was never stil'd Divus though often Deus before his Death, and the Writer of the Astro­nomicon, as will by and by appear, dy'd before Augustus.

To speak out what I think will not be deny'd, Manilius the Author of this Poem was young when he wrote it, and dy'd young; and therefore cannot be that Manilius Antiochus whom Scaliger reckons to be 120, and Vossi­us is forced to confess was 70 years of Age about the time Varus was de­feated by the Germans. The first part [Page 44] of this Assertion may be demonstra­ted from almost all the Pages of his Book, in which we meet with many things that are not to be accounted for on the Hypothesis of Sixty: He is too fierce and fiery for that Age, and bounds every Step he takes: In a Man of years when we find a Warmth we feel it to be regular, he never starts, his Pace is equal, and seldom varies but when his Subject forces him to a more than ordinary quickness.

Judgment appears all thro', and a strength well govern'd: When he rises he doth not affect to climb but to walk, like a sober Traveller, who knowing his own force seeks the easiest ascent, when his Ground is uneven, or he is oblig'd to take the advantage of a Prospect. But 'tis not so in Youth whose Fancies as well as Passi­ons are impetuous; that pleases them most which is most daring, finding [Page 45] they have strength they use it to the utmost, and when at last they sink they seem rather worn out, than ti­red. I cannot compare the Spirit of Poetry possessing a Youth, of a strong generous Imagination and vigorous Constitution, to any thing better than to a Flame seizing on the Body of a Meteor, the whole Mass blazes, and mounts upon a sudden; but its motion is all the way uneven, and it quickly falls in a despicable Gelly: He that looks on the Latin of Manilius will see that I do him no Injury when I compare him to this Meteor, for e­ven when he is oblig'd to give rules, and is ty'd almost to a certain form of words, he struggles against those necessary Fetters, he reaches after the strongest Metaphors, uses the boldest Catachresis, and against all the rules of Decency labours after an obscure Sub­lime, when he should endeavour to be [Page 46] plain, intelligible and easy: But as soon as he hath room to get loose, how wildly doth he rove? he is not free but licentious, and strives to err greatly. 'Tis needless to produce par­ticulars, since they are so visible in the Prefaces, Fables, and Descriptions thro' his Books: And upon the whole it may be affirm'd, there are so many boldnesses scatter'd thro' his Poem, and so much of Toysomness just by them, that a Man may read his Youth in his writings, as well as his Contem­poraries could do it in his Face.

I would mention and enlarge up­on his conspicuous Vanity, and from thence endeavour to support the Judg­ment I have already pass'd; but that I consider that fault when it hath once possess'd a Man is not to be cool'd by all the Frost and Snow of Age: Yet from the Vanity of Manilius I think a particular Argument may be [Page 47] drawn to prove him to be young, for he had a design to rival or perfect the inimitable Virgil. This is evident from the Preface to his third Book:

For here it is plain he had this migh­ty project in his head, and after he had prepar'd himself by this Astrono­mical Poem, rais'd his Fancy and got a good turn of Verse, was resolv'd to prosecute it with his utmost vigour; he saw the vastness of the design

[Page 48] Yet he hop'd to live to finish it, though in the beginning of this Poem he wishes for old Age that he might compleat the Work he then had in hand; yet having gone through the most difficult part of it sooner, and with more ease than at first he thought he should have done; he sets up for new Schemes and thinks he shall have years enough before him pru­dently to begin, and Strength succes­fully to carry on so great an Under­taking. In this very Preface he rec­kons up a great many other Subjects fit to employ a Poet, but in express terms lays them all aside.

But the Roman History is in his Thoughts tho' he will not begin to [Page 49] write, till his greater leisure gives him opportunity to do it.

These two Observations perswade me, that Manilius was Young when he began this Poem, and that he dy'd Young, and did not live to finish his design, or accurately Re­vise what he had written, will I think be very evident from what follows: It cannot be deny'd, that this Poet had advanc'd very far in his Work, whilst Tiberius was at Rhodes, for in his fourth Book, he gives this Cha­racter of that Island:

Now¹ Tiberius retired to Rhodes, when C. Antistius and L. Balbus, were Consuls; he continu'd there Seven ² Years, and return'd in the Consul­ship of P. Vinicius and P. Alfinius Va­rus; and yet in the first Book we meet with the³ Description of the Pro­digies that appeared before the defeat of Varus in Germany which hapned when Poppaeus Sabinus and Q. Sulpici­us Camerinus were Consuls, about eight years after the Return of Tiberius from Rhodes: What shall we say then? was the fourth Book written and publish'd before the first? or would the Poet have strain'd for that Complement to Rhodes after the Varian Defeat? with [Page 51] what Propriety could that Island be call'd Hospitium recturi Principis Orbem, or with what Truth could it be said to contain the most glorious Lumina­ry next to Caesar, when that imagin'd Star had not for many years been in that Horizon, and now shone in other quarters of the World? No, this had been Banter and inexplicable Riddle: But if we suppose Manilius to have had this Work under his hand several years, to have revis'd it, and added what he thought would adorn his Po­em, then we can easily give an ac­count why his fourth Book should appear to be eight years younger than his first: A little before Tiberius's re­turn from Rhodes he wrote his fourth Book, after that he composs'd his fifth, and sixth which is now lost; then at several times revising his Work, and about the time of the Va­rian Defeat being upon the end of his [Page 52] first Book, he added to his discourse of Comets a short Account of those prodigious Meteors that then appear­ed, and which Historians⁴ tell us were the most amazing that were ever seen: Soon after this he dy'd be­fore he had corrected the fourth Book, as appears from the Character which in that Book he gives the Island Rhodes, and which his last and finish­ing hand could not have left there.

These Observations will help us to give some tolerable account of the o­ther difficulties relating to this Author, for to any one who enquires why the first Book is more correct than the rest? why the Impurities of Stile the Criticks charge upon him are for the most part pickt out of the four last Books? I would answer, we have on­ly [Page 53] the first and rude Draughts of them; and that as Poets and Painters are said to be very near ally'd, so they agree in nothing more than they do in this, that though in their Scetches we see the Master, yet we may find something that the Finisher would cor­rect: To him who asks why there is no mention of this Poet in any of the Antients, I would reply, That Mani­lius having left an unfinisht Piece, his Family was studious both of his Cre­dit and their own, they carefully pre­serv'd the Orphan, but would not ex­pose it: In that Age when Poetry was rais'd to its greatest highth, it had argued the utmost Fondness or the ex­treamest Folly in a Noble Family to have publish'd a crude uncorrect Po­em, and thereby engage their Honors to defend it.

Besides, Augustus who was infinite­ly jealous of his reputation ‘[Page 54] (—Si palpere recalcitrat undique tutus,’ says Horace who knew his Temper very well) would not have born the too officious Complement of being in­vok'd, unless the Poem had been as correct as Virgil's Georgicks, and fit for his Genius to inspire. Lucan after­ward suffer'd for the like Complement, though indeed upon a far different ac­count: He lost his Life for pretending to be inspir'd by Nero, when he made better Verses than the Emperour him­self; his Flattery to Nero was too great, as this of Manilius to Augustus had been too little, and a Defect in such Addresses was as dangerous un­der the wise, as an Excess in them was under the vain Emperors of Rome.

[Page 55] You are sufficiently tired, I fear, with this long Discourse about Manili­us full of guesses and conjectures, yet I cannot dismiss this Subject without adding something concerning his Qua­lity, and place of Birth. His Quali­ty he carries in his name, the Manilij being one of the best Families in Rome, which so often fill'd the Consul's Chair, and was employ'd in the greatest Offices of that Common­wealth. Indeed some have affirm'd that he was of Servile Condition, and being made free, according to Cu­stom, took the name of his Patron: But since I have already prov'd, that he was not the Manilius Antiochus in Pliny, there is no reason left for any one to say he was a Slave; he himself very expresly, I think, declares him­self to be a Roman born, for in his fourth Book he shews a Concern for the Interests of the Roman Common­wealth [Page 56] down as low as the Age of Hannibal. ‘⁵ Speratum Hannibalem nostris ceci­disse catenis:’ which he could not with any Propri­ety have done, had his relation to that State commenc'd so lately, or had his Ancestors had no Interest in the then Losses or Victories of Rome. And seeing he was born a Roman, and of the Family of the Manilij, we may farther from some other Evidences con­clude that he sprung from a very con­siderable, if not one of the noblest Branches of it; for if we reflect that tho' he dy'd young, yet he had been well instructed in the several Hypothe­ses of the Antient Philosophers, accu­rately taught the Doctrine of the Sto­icks, [Page 57] led thro' all the intricate mazes and Subtilties of Astrology, that he was acquainted with the Mathematicks, knew all the Mythology of the Antients, and had run thro' the Greek Poets, we shall find in him all the signs of a very li­beral and costly Education, and con­sequently of a considerable Quality, or at least a great Fortune. But if we reflect farther that he was conversant at Court, and acquainted with the mo­dish, and nicest Flattery of the Palace, that he made his Complements in the same Phrase that the most intimate and finisht Courtier ever us'd, we may raise another probable Argument that his Quality was great: Now this reflection may be supported by one observation made on the Complement he pays Tiberius when at Rhodes: He stiles him⁶ Magni Mundi Lumen, using [Page 58] the very same Word, which we meet with in Velleius Paterculus, who wrote all Court Language, upon the very same occasion.⁷ Alterum Reipublicae Lumen is Tiberius, and he retir'd to Rhodes, ne Fulgor suus orientium Juve­num, C. et L. Caes. obstaret initiis, says that Historian.

As to his place of Birth, since we find him at Rome when he wrote this Poem, ‘⁸ Qua genitus cum fratre Remus hanc condidit Urbem:’ and no Author settles him any where else, it may with some shew of Pro­bability be concluded, that he was born in that City, in which we are certain he both studeid, and led his [Page 59] life: But if we consider farther that he takes all occasions to shew his respect for Rome, that with Zeal he mentions those extravagant Honours which the Flattery⁹ of Asia, and the Vanity of her own Citizens had put upon her, we shall find so much Ve­neration in his Writings, that it could not well rise from any other Spring than that Piety which Men of gene­rous Sense and Spirit always retain for the Places of their Birth.

To close this Discourse, I have prov'd this Author was not the Mani­lius Antiochus mention'd by Pliny, Nat. Hist. lib. 35. cap. 17. Nor that Manili­us lib. 10. cap. 2. and that both Vossius and Mr. Tristan are very much mista­ken in their Conjectures. There re­mains [Page 60] another Manilius whom the same¹ Pliny, commends for his Skill in Mathematicks; this Mathematician Scaliger thinks to be the same with the Poet, because he liv'd in the time of Augustus, and was conversant in the same Studies with our Author; These I must own are not convincing proofs; but as there are no good Arguments for, so there are no Objections against his pretences, and therefore he still stands fairest for the Person.

This Manilius of a Noble Family, born in Rome, and living in the Age of Augustus, had a liberal Education suitable to his Quality and the time in which he liv'd: his Writings shew him to be well acquainted with the Principles of the several Sects of Philo­sophers, but addicted to the Stoicks, [Page 61] whose Hypothesis in all its out-lines bears a very near resemblance to some of the Theories that are now in Fa­shion. The Modern Philosophers build Worlds according to the Mo­dels of the Antient Heathens, and Ze­no is the Architect.

The Stoicks Principles were in short these: They say there is one Infinite, Eternal, Almighty Mind, which being diffus'd thro' the whole Universe of well order'd and regularly dispos'd Matter, actuates every part of it, and is as it were, the Soul of this vast Bo­dy: The Parts of this Body they say are of two Sorts, the Celestial, viz. the Planets and the fixt Stars, and the Ter­restrial, viz. the Earth, and all the o­ther Elements about it: The Celesti­al continue still the same without any Change or Variation; but the whole Sublunary World is not only liable to [Page 62] Dissolution, but often hath been, and shall again be dissolv'd by Fire: From this Chaos which, because it is made by Fire, they call Fire, they say ano­ther System would arise, the several particles of it settling according to their respective Weights: Thus the Earth would sink lowest, the Water would be above that, the Air next, and the Fire encompass the other Three: But because all the Earthy parts are not e­qually rigid, nor equally dispers'd thro' the Chaos, therefore there would be Cavities and Hollows in some pla­ces fit to receive the Water, and to be Channels for Rivers: In other places Hills and Mountains would rise, and the whole System appear in that very form and figure which it now bears. They farther add, that this Infinite Mind hath made one general decree concerning the Government of the lower World, and executes it by give­ing [Page 63] such and such Powers to the Ce­lestial Bodies, as are sufficient and pro­per to produce the design'd Effects: This Decree thus executed they call Fate, and upon this Principle their whole System of Astrology depends: That some things happen'd in the World which were very unaccountable every days Experience taught them; they learn'd also or pretended to have learn'd from very many accurate, and often repeated Observations, that there was a constant Agreement between those odd unaccountable Accidents and such and such Positions of the Hea­venly Bodies, and therefore conclud­ed that those Bodies were concern'd in those Effects: Hence they began to settle Rules, and to draw their scat­ter'd Observations into an Art; And this was the State of the Hypothe­sis and Astrology of the Stoicks, (I must call it so for distinction sake, tho', [Page 64] neither the Hypothesis it self, nor the Astrology built upon it was invented by Zeno, but deliver'd down to him and his Scholars by the Chaldeans and other Philosophers of the East) 'till the Greeks ambitious of making it appear their own, endeavour'd to e­stablish support and adorn it with their Fables, and by that means made that which before seem'd only preca­rious, (as all Arts which are drawn from bare Observation and not from any settled Principles in Nature must appear to be) ridiculous Fancies, and wild Imaginations: But I do not de­sign an Account, nor a defence of the Astrology of the Antients: You know, Sir, it hath been spoken a­gainst and derided on the one Hand, and supported and applauded on the other by Men of great Wit, Judg­ment, Piety, and Worth: and he who shall take a View of it, will al­ways [Page 65] find enough in it to divert his leisure, if not to satisfie his Curio­sity, and raise his Admiration.

This is the Hypothesis which Mani­lius endeavour'd to explain in La­tin Verse: Had he liv'd to revise it, we had now had a more beau­tiful and correct piece; he had a Ge­nius equal to his Undertaking, his Fancy was bold and daring, his Skill in the Mathematicks great e­nough for his Design, his Know­ledge of the History, and Acquain­tance with the Mythology of the Antients general: As he is now, some of the Criticks place him a­mongst the Judicious and Elegant, and all allow him to be one of the useful, instructive, profitable Poets: He hints at some Opinions which later Ages have thought fit to glo­ry [Page 66] in as their own Discoveries. Thus he defends the Fluidity of the Hea­vens against the Hypothesis of Aristo­tle.

He asserts that the fixed Stars are not all in the same concave Superfi­cies of the Heavens, and equally di­stant from the Center of the World: He maintains that they are all of the same Nature and Substance with the Sun, and that each of them hath a particular Vortex of his own; and lastly he affirms that the Milkie Way is only the undistinguish'd Lustre of a great many small Stars, which the Moderns now see to be such, thro' the Glass of Galilaeo: In short, we do not give him too great a Cha­racter, when we say he is one of the most discerning Philosophers that An­tiquity can shew.

[Page 67] In my Version I have endeavou­red to render this Author in [...]lligi­ble and easie, and therefore have been sometimes forc'd to take a lar­ger Compass than a strict Tra [...]sla­tion would allow; and have [...]d­ded some Notes to make him [...]ess obscure: Amongst those Notes y [...]u will find one relating to the Th [...] ­ory of the Earth, which I must de­sire you to lay aside, it being written and printed several years ago, and before I had well consi­dered the weak unphilosophical Prin­ciples, and pernicious Consequences of that vain Hypothesis.

And now, Sir, you are near the End of this long Letter, give me [...]eave to tell you, that I have not tired [...]ou half so much, as at first I de­sign'd [Page 68] to do; having left unsaid a great many things relating both to the Author and his Writings: Those perhaps will appear at the Head of a Latin Edition of his Works, which I shall think my self oblig'd to under­take, unless a very learned Gentle­man, from whom I have long expect­ed it, frees me from that trouble, and obliges the World with his own Ob­servations.