Arnobius

Footnotes

^[4939] Lit., “by opposition of the parts of each.” Considerable difficulty has been felt as to the abrupt way in which the book ends as it is arranged in the ms. Orelli has therefore adopted the suggestion of an anonymous critic, and transposed cc. 35, 36, 37 to the end. This does not, however, meet the difficulty; for the same objection still holds good, that there is a want of connection and harmony in these concluding chapters, and that, even when thus arranged, they do not form a fitting conclusion to the whole work.

^[4940] Lit., “of.”

^[4941] Lit., “that effigies have been far removed from them.” This may be understood, either as meaning that the gods had not visible form at all, or, as above, that their likenesses made by men showed no resemblance.

Chapter XXXVI

^[4942] in Orelli.

^[4943] It is important to notice the evidence in this one sentence of haste and want of revision. In the first line we find a genitive (discordiarum—“dissensions”), but not the noun on which it depends; and in the apodosis a verb (disjunctas esse—“have been removed,” i.e., “are remote”) has no subject, although its gender imperatively requires that has res, or some such words, be supplied. One omission might have been easily ascribed to a slip on the part of the copyist; but two omissions such as these occurring so closely, must, it would seem, be assigned to the impetuous disregard of minutiæ with which Arnobius blocked out a conclusion which was never carefully revised. (Cf. Appendix, note 1, and p. 539, n. 8.) The importance of such indications is manifest in forming an opinion on the controversy as to this part of the work.

^[4944] Lit., “are of…those meeting the functions of mortality,” obeunti-um, corrected by Gelenius (according to Orelli) for the ms. -bus, retained, though unintelligible, by Canterus, Oberth., and Hild.

^[4945] [See p. 519, note 1, and p. 528, cap. 26, supra.]

^[4946] Lit., “of.” [Cap. 29, p. 529, supra.]

^[4947] Lit., “some time.”

Chapter XXXVII

^[4948] Lit., “of.” [Cap. 29, p. 529, supra.]

^[4949] Lit., “of.” [Cap. 29, p. 529, supra.]

^[4950] Lit., “divine things.”

^[4951] So the ms., both Roman edd., Hild., and Oehler, reading promptæ; corrected præsumptæ—“taken for granted,” in the rest.

^[4952] i.e., offerings to parents, as the name implies, and other relatives who were dead.

Chapter XXXVIII

^[4953] 35 in Orelli.

^[4954] Lit., “in the writings of which we read.”