Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XVI.djvu/267

 VALERIUS FLACCUS VALETTA 24T at Mount Gaurus and at Suessula. In 342 he was appointed dictator in consequence of a mutiny in the army, which he quelled by his personal popularity. He was dictator again in 301, when he defeated the Marsi and Etruscans. The last 28 years of his life were passed in re- tirement. , He held curule dignities 21 times, and repeatedly enjoyed the honors of a triumph. VALERIUS FLACCUS, Cains, a Latin poet, born in Padua, flourished in the time of Vespasian, and died about A. D. 88. Nothing is known of his life, and his only work now extant is the unfinished heroic poem called the Argo- nautica, in which he narrates the adventures of Jason and his companions. His poem was discovered in 1416 in the monastery of St. Gall, and was first published in 1472. The best edition is Theil's (Halle, 1863). It has been translated into English verse by Nicholas Whyte (1565), and the first book by Thomas Noble (1809). VALERIUS M MI S, a Roman author, who flourished during the reign of Tiberius. No- thing is known of his life except that he accom- panied Sextus Pompius, the friend of Ovid, into Asia. His name is appended to a collec- tion of historical anecdotes under the title of Factorum et Dictorum Memorabilium Libri IX. The compilation embraces a large va- riety of subjects, and as a historical authority is of some value. His diction is very ornate, but often incorrect and obscure. He was one of the favorite authors of his time, and the frequent copying of his works has undoubted- ly been very injurious to the text. His books were also a favorite study in the middle ages, and were frequently imitated (as by Saxo Grammaticus), abridged, and translated. Epi- tomes of his works by Julius Paris and Janua- rius Nepotianus are extant. The best edition with critical apparatus is Halm's (Leipsic, 1865). It was translated into English by W. Speed (London, 1678). VALERIUS PUBLICOLA. See PTJBLICOLA. VALETTA, or La Valetta, a seaport town, capi- tal of the island of Malta, on the N. E. coast, in lat. 35 54' N., Ion. 14 31' E.; pop. about 60,000. It occupies an elevated peninsula be- tween two harbors, the one on the east, called the Great harbor, extending about 2 m. inland. Valetta. Five forts command the approach by sea, and five lines of fortifications, mounting 1,000 guns, and hornwork, extend across the isthmus. The ground upon which it stands is very uneven, and the streets are connected by flights of steps. The cathedral was built in 1580, and is exceed- ingly interesting for its numerous monuments in marble and bronze, paintings, and curious relics. The keys of Jerusalem, Acre, and Rhodes are deposited in it. There are 19 other churches. The palace of the grand master of the knights of Malta is now the governor's residence ; it contains a corridor hung with the portraits of the knights, an armory with many kinds of ancient armor, and a library and mu- seum adjoining. The university was founded in 1838, and has faculties of divinity, law, medi- cine, and arts. There are naval, military, and civil hospitals. The other buildings most wor- thy of notice are the exchange, theatre, several au'berges or separate palaces of the knights, and the house of industry. A great aqueduct sup- plied Valetta with water from Citta Vecchia, 8 m. distant. The botanic garden is in the suburb of Floriana. The burial grounds have been formed out of the bastions of the forti- fications. The opera house, erected at great cost a few years before, was destroyed by fire