lacks the critical faculty.
For his method of working see Plin. _Ep._ iii. 5.

Politically, Pliny recognizes the necessity of the empire, but his
heroes are old Romans such as Cincinnatus and Cato. His Roman and
Italian feeling is intense: cf. xxxvii. 201, 'In toto orbe ...
pulcherrima omnium est in rebusque merito principatum naturae obtinet
Italia, rectrix parensque mundi altera.'

His view of life is gloomy (_N.H._ ii. 25, 'nec quidquam miserius
homine'), and through the _Naturae Historiae_ there runs a monotonous
strain of condemnation of the immorality of his day. He is uncertain
as to divine providence, but considers the belief in it salutary, and
he accepts portents (ii. 92). His tendency is, in the main, Stoic; he
was probably acquainted with Paetus Thrasea, who corresponded with
Pomponius.

VALERIUS FLACCUS.

His full name is given in the Vatican MS. as C. Valerius Flaccus
Setinus Balbus. It is doubtful (even if the last two names really
belong to the poet) whether _Setinus_ means from Setia in Italy or
from Setia in Spain. The poet's Latinity gives no evidence on the
point. Quintilian is the only Roman writer who refers to him; x. 1,
90, 'Multum in Valerio Flacco nuper amisimus'; which shows that he
must have died about A.D. 90. In the beginning of the first Book of
the _Argonautica_ (written shortly after A.D. 70), Valerius addresses
Vespasian, referring to his exploits in Britain, and to the capture of
Jerusalem by Titus; i. 7 _sqq._,

'Tuque o, pelagi cui maior aperti
fama, Caledonius postquam tua carbasa vexit
oceanus Phrygios prius indignatus Iulos,
eripe me populis et habenti nubila terrae,
sancte pater, veterumque fave veneranda canenti
facta virum. Versam proles tua pandet Idumen
(namque potest), Solymo nigrantem pulvere fratrem
spargentemque faces et in omni turre furentem.'

i. 5 _sqq._ probably shows that Valerius was a quindecimvir sacris
faciundis,

'Phoebe, mone, si Cymaeae mihi conscia vatis
stat casta cortina domo, si laurea digna
fronte viret.'

Cf. the allusion in viii. 239 _sqq._ to Cybele's bath, which was under
the management of the xv.viri; and to the rites of lustration, iii.
417 _sqq._

There are several allusions to the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in A.D.
79, _e.g._ iv. 507.

The _Argonautica_ is in eight Books, the last being incomplete, and
the story breaking off shortly before the death of Medea's brother,
Absyrtus. Valerius probably mea