Page:The Natural History of Pliny.djvu/289

 Chap. 24] ACCOUNT OF COUNTEIES, ETC. 255 the Salassi to be of Tauriscan origin, but most other writers, giving a Grreek^ interpretation to their name, con- sider the Lepontii to have been those of the followers of Hercules who were left behind in consequence of their limbs being frozen by the snow of the Alps. They are also of opinion that the inhabitants of the Grecian Alps are de- scended from a portion of the Greeks of his army, and that the Euganeans, being sprung from an origin so illustrious, thence took their name^. The head of these are the Stceni^. The Vennonenses^ and the Sarunetes'', peoples of the Ehseti, dwell about the sources of the river Ehenus, while the tribe of the Lepontii, known as the Uberi, dwell in the vicinity of the sources of the Ehodanus, in the same district of the Alps. There are also other native tribes here, who have received Latin rights, such as the Octodurenses^, and their neighbours the Centrones^, the Cottian^ states, the Ligurian Yagienui, descended from the Caturiges'', as also those called Montani"' ; besides numerous nations of the Capillati^ on the confines of the Ligurian Sea. ^ Making it to come from the Greek verb XetVoj, " to leave beliiiid." 2 As though being evyeveioi or evyevets, " of honourable descent," or ^ Strabo mentions the Stoni or Stoeni among the minor Alpine tribes. IMannert thinks that they dwelt near the sources of the river Chiese, about the site of the modera village of Storo. ^ It has been suggested that from them the modem Valtelline takes its name. ^ Hardouin suggests that the Suanetcs, who are again mentioned, are the people here meant. ^ They are supposed to have dwelt in the present canton of Martignac in the Valais, and the Vaudois. 7 They dwelt in the Tarantaise, in the duchy of Savoy. The village called Centron still retains their name. ^ The states subject to Cottius, an Alpine chief, who having gained the favour of Augustus, was left by him m possession of tliis portion of tho Alps, A-ith the title of Praefect. These states, in the vicinity of the mo- dern Momit Cenis, seem to have extended from Ebrodunum or Embrun in Gaul, to Segusio, the modem Susa, in Italy, inelucUiig tlic Pass of Mont Gcnevre. The territory of Cottius was uniti-d by Nero to the Boman empire, as a separate province called the " Alj)es Cottia?." ^ Tlicy dwelt m the vicinity of Ebrodunum orEnibrunalroady mentioned. ^^ The " mountaineers." Some editions read here " Appuaiii," so called, from the town of Appua, now Pontromoli. rians," have been previously mentioned in Chap. 7.
 * ' parentage."
 * ^ The Vagiemii, and the Capillati Ligm'os, or " Long-haired Ligu-*