Page:The Natural History of Pliny.djvu/89

 Chap. 22.] ACCOUNT OP THE WOELD. 55 ris and Necepsos, supposes that each degree of the lunar orbit (which, as I have said, is the least) consists of little more than 33 stadia ; in the very large orbit of Saturn the number is double ; in that of the sun, which, as we have said, is in the middle we have the half of the sum of these numbers. And this is indeed a very modest calculation^, since if we add to the orbit of Saturn the distance from him to the zodiac, we shall have an infinite number of degrees^ CHAP. 22. (24.) — OF THE STAES WHICH APPEAE SUDDENLY, OE OF COMETS^ A few things still remain to be said concerning the world ; for stars are suddenly formed in the heavens themselves ; of these there are various kinds. (25.) The Greeks name these stars comets^ ; we name them CrinitsD, as if shaggy with bloody locks, and surrounded with bristles like hair. Those stars, which have a mane hanging do i from their lower part, like a long beard, are named Pogoniae^ Those that are named AcontisB^ vibrate like a dart with a very quick motion. It w^as one of this kind which the Emperor Titus described in his very excellent poem, as haTQg been seen in his fifth consulship ; and this was the last of these bodies which has been observed. AVhen they are short and pointed they are named Xiphiae^ ; these are the 1 " Kon inter Lunam et Satui-nmn, sed inter Lunam et coelum aflixa- nim stellai'um, medium esse Solem modo dixerat. Quam parum sui meminit ! " Alexandre in Lem. i. 291. 2 " Qui computandi modus plurimimi habet verecundise et modestice, quum ibi sistit, nee ulterius progreditm-." Hardouin in Lemaire, i. 292. 3 " .... ad Satumi cii-culum addito Signileri ipsius intervallo, . . . . " ^ We may remark, that our author, for the most part, adopts the opinions of Ai-istotle respecting comets and meteors of all kinds, while he pays but httle attention to those of his contemporary Seneca, which how- ever, on some points, would appear to be more corx'cct. See the remarks of Marcus in Ajasson, ii. 244. Under the title of comets he includes, not only those bodies which are permanent and move in regular orbits, but such as are transient, and are produced from various causes, the natui'e of which is not weU understood. See Aristotle, Meteor, hb. i. cap. 6, 7, and Seneca, Nat. Quajst. Ub. 7, and Manihus, i. 807 et seq. ^ a Ko/x?;, coma. 6 a TTioyiovios, barbatus. Most of these terms are employed by Ari- stotle and by Seneca. ^ ab aKovrioVy jacidum.
 * a ^i^os, ensis.