TITI LIVII HISTORIARUM ROMANARUM LIBER PRIMUS. EDITED, WITH INTRODUCTION AND NOTES, BY LOUIS C. PURSER, M.A., FELLOW AND TUTOR OF TRINITY COLLEGE, DUBLIN. BIBLIC JUL 1882 BODLEIAN DUBLIN: BROWNE & NOLAN, NASSAU-STREET LONDON: SIMPKIN, MARSHALL & CO. PREFACE. THE text followed in this edition is that of Madvig and Ussing, published at Copenhagen 1873. In preparing the Notes I have extensively followed Professor Seeley's edition, which leaves little to be desired; but have also had before me the school editions of Frey (Leipsic, Teubner, 1875), and Weissenborn (Berlin, Weidmann ed. 7, 1879). This latter authority I have frequently cited under the abbreviation Weiss.' Also the second edition of Madvig's Emendationes Livianae. In the Introduction, the third section is mainly taken from Professor Seeley's Historical Examination prefixed to his edition (who himself abridges Schwegler), and the fourth section from Mommsen's Roman History. The young student who cares for early history will do well to read Ihne's "Early Rome," one of the series of " Epochs of Ancient History," published by Longmans. Wherever mythology is touched on I have followed Preller's work on Roman Mythology (Berlin, Weidmann, 1858). In references, where two numbers are given, they nearly always refer to the chapter and section of the first book; when three numbers are given, they refer to the book, chapter, and section. INTRODUCTION. I. LIFE OF LIVY. He was born at NEXT to nothing is known about the life of Livy. Patavium (Padua) in 59 B.C., came to Rome in 29 his history probably about 26 B.C. and continued writing it till it was interrupted by his death in 19 A.D. Besides his history he wrote a few philosophical dialogues and some letters to his son on rhetoric. He seems to have been acquainted with the Emperor Augustus (4, 20, 7). II. ON THE CHARACTER OF LIVY'S WORK. The several books of Livy's work are headed in the MSS." Ab urbe condita Liber i., ii., iii., &c." The whole history narrated events from the arrival of Æneas in Italy to the death of Drusus, the step-son of Augustus (B.C. 9), in 142 books. Of these we have 35 surviving, with some fragments of the others. The actual books we have are 1 to 10 (ending with the year 293 B.C.), and 21 to 45 (from 218 B.C. to 167 B.C.) This shows the greater detail in which Livy treated his subject as it came nearer his own time. There are Epitomes, or, as they are called, Periochae (reptoxài), of all the books (except 136 and 137), supposed to have been written by Florus, as they are found in the MSS. with that writer's works. It is highly improbable that such an extensive work as Livy's was published all at once. The usual opinion is that he published it in portions of ten books (decads), for it is said each such portion has à certain unity as dealing with a period or event more or less connected and complete; and books 21 to 30, containing the history of the second Punic War, and 71 to 80, that of the Social War, are appealed to in confirmation of this theory. As against this we may point to the Civil War being narrated in books 109 to 116. The question is not an easy one, but the decad-theory is not satisfactorily proved. Any one who wishes to examine the point will find the arguments for the decad-theory in Niebuhr's Lectures on Roman History, p. 47 (Eng. Trans.) and against it in Weissenborn's Introduction to his |