No More Learning

Aemil. 2; Athen. xi. p. 508, e. ) [E. H. B. ) praetorship, which however he did not enter upon
DIOX (Aſwv). 1. Of Alexandria, an Academic till the year following, the first of the reign of Septi-
philosopher and a friend of Antiochus. He was mius Severus. During the short reign of Pertinax
bent by his fellow-citizens as anubassador to Rome, Dion Cassius enjoyed the emperor's friendship, and


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DION.
1029
DIOX.
)
ment.
conducted liimself on all occasions as an upright in A. 1). 3. 20, as legate to Dalmatin, and the year
and virtuous man. The accession of Septimius after to l:innonia. In the latter province he re-
Severus raised great hopes in Dion of being further stored strict discipline among the troops; and on his
piromoted; but these hopes were not realized, not- return to Rome, the praetorians began to fear lest
withstanding the favour which Severus chewed liiin he should use his intinence for the purpose of inter-
in the beginning of his reign. Soon after the acces fering with their conduct likewise, and in order to
sion of Severus, Dion wrote a work on the dreams prevent this, they demanded of the emperor Alex-
and prodigies which had announced the elevation ander Severus to put him to death. But the om-
of this emperor, and wliich he presented to Severus, peror not only disregarded their clamour, but raised
who thanked him for it in a long epistle. The Dion, A. 1). 229, to his second consulshiij, in which
night after he had received this epistle. Dion was Alexander himself was his colleague. Alexander
called upon in a dream to write the history of his also conferred other distinctions upon him, and
own time, which induced him to work out the ma- undertook out of his own purse to defray the ex-
terials he had already collected for a history of penses which the dignity of consul demanded of
Commodus. A similar dream or vision afterwards Dion. Ilowever, as Dion could not feel safe at
led him to write the history of Septimius Severus Rome under these circumstances, the emperor re-
and Caracalla. When the history of Commodus quested him to take up his residence somewhere in
was completed, Dion read it to the emperor, tho Italy at a distance from the city. After the expira-
received it with so much approbation, that Dion tion of his consulship, Dion returned to Rome, and
was encouraged to write a history of Rome from spent some time with the emperor in Campania ;
the earliest times, and to insert in it what he had but he appears at length to have become tired of
already written about the reign of Commodus. the precarious life at Rome, and under the pretext
The next ten years, therefore, were spent in mak- of suffering from a bad foot, he asked and obtained
ing the preparatory studies and collecting materials, permission to return to his native place, and there
and twelve years more, during the greater part of to spend the remainder of his life in quiet retire-
which he lived in quiet retirement at Capua, were At Nicaea Dion completed his history, and
employed in composing the work. It was his inten- there h also died. The time of his death is un-
tion to carry the history as far down as possible, and known. Respecting his family nothing is recorded,
to add an account of the reigns of the emperors suc- except that in two passages he just mentions his
ceeding Sererus, so far as he might witness them. wife and children ; and it may be that the Dion
Reimarus conceives that Dion began collecting his Cassius whom we find consul in A. D. 291 was a
materials in A. D. 201, and that after the death of grandson of our historian. The account we have
Severus, in A. D. 211, he commenced the composi- here given of the life of Dion Cassius is derived
tion of his work, which would thus have been from scattered passages of his own work, and from
completed in A. D. 222.
a short article in Suidas.
The reason why Severus did not promote Dion The following list contains the works which are
is probably owing to the emperor's change of opi- attributed by the ancients to Dion Cassius: 1. The
nion respecting Commodus ; for, during the latter work on dreams and prodigies, which we men-
part of his reign, he admired Commodus as much tioned above, is lost. Dion had probably written
as he had before detested him; and what Dion had it only to please the emperor, and he seems after-
written about him could not be satisfactory to an wards to have regretted its publication ; for, al-
admirer of the tyrant. Dion thus remained in though he is otherwise rather credulous and fond
Italy for many years, without any new dignity of relating prodigies, yet in his history he mentions
being conferred upon him. In the reign of Cara- those which have reference to Septimius Severus
calla it became customary for a select number of only very cursorily. 2. The history of the reign of
senators to accompany the emperor in his expedi- Commodus, which he afterwards incorporated in
tions and travels, and Dion was one of them. his history of Rome. 3. On the reign of the em-
He bitterly complains of having been com- peror Trajan. This work is mentioned only by
pelled in consequence to spend immense sums of Suidas; and, if it really was a distinct work,
money, and not only to witness the tyrant's dis- the substance of it was incorporated in his Roman
graceful conduct, but to some extent to be an history. 4. A history of Persia is likewise men-
accomplice in it. In the company of the emperor, tioned only by Suidas, but is probably a mistake,
Dion thus visited Nicomedeia ; but he does not and Suidas confounds Dion with Deinon, who is
appear to have gone any further ; for of the known to have written a work on Persia. 5. 'Evó-
subsequent events in Asia and Egypt he does not dia, that is, Itineraries, is mentioned by Suidas ;
speak as an eye-witness, but only appeals to re- but it is very doubtful whether it was a work of
ports. Macrinus, however, appears to have again Dion Cassius, or of his grandfather, Dion Chrysos-
called him to Asia, and to have entrusted to him tomus, whose extensive travels may have led him
the administration of the free cities of Pergamus to write such a work. 6. A life of Arrian is
and Smyrna, which had shortly before revolted. altogether unknown, except through the mention
Dion went to this post about A. D. 218, and seems of Suidas. 7. Getica is attributed to Dion Cassius
to have remained there for about three years, on by Suidas, Jornandes, and Freculphus; while
account of the various points which had to be set- from Philostratus (lit. Soph. i. 7) we might infer,
tled. At the expiration of his office, however, he that Dion Chrysostomus was its author. 8. The
did not return to Rome, but went to Nicaea in History of Rome ('Pwuaian iotopia), the great
Bithynia. On his arrival there he was taken ill, work of Dion Cassius, consisted of 80 books, and
but notwithstanding was raised, during his ab- was further divided into decads, like Liry's Roman
sence, to the consulship, either A. D. 219 or 220. history. It embraced the whole history of Rome
After this he obtained the proconsulship of Africa, from the earliest times, that is, from the landing of
which, however, cannot have been earlier than Aeneas in Italy down to a. D. 2. 29, the year in
D. 224. After his return to Italy, he was sent, which Dion quitted Italy and returned to Xicaca.


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1030
DION.
DION.
The excerpta, which A. Mai has published from a rough knowledge of his subject, and that his no.
Vatican MS. , and which belonged to a work contain-tions of Roman life and Roman institutions were
ing the history froin the time of Valerian down to far more correct than those of some of his pre-
the time of Constantine the Great, bear indeed the decessors, such as Dionysius of Ilalicarnassus.
name of Dion Cassius, but are in all probability Whenever he is led into crror, it is generally
taken from the work of a Christian writer, who owing to his not having access to authentic
continued the work of Dion, and A. Vai is in- sources, and to his being obliged to satisfy him-
clined to think that this continuation was the work self with secondary ones. It must also be borne
of Joannes Antiochenus. Dion Cassius liimself in mind, as Dion himself observes (lii. 19), that
(lxxii. 18) intimates, that he treated the history of the history of the cmpire presented much more
republican Rome briefly, but that he endeavoured difficulties to the historian than that of the re-
to give a more minute and detailed account of public. In those parts in which he relates contem-
those events of which he had himself been an eye- porary events, his work fornis a sort of medium
witness. Unfortunately, only a comparatively between real history and mere memoirs of the
small portion of this work has come down to us emperors. His object was to give a record as com-
entirc. Of the first thirty-four books we possess plete and as accurate as possible of all the impaos.
only fragments, and the Excerpta, which Ursinus, tant events; but liis work is not on that account
Valesius, and A. Vai have successively published a dry chronological catalogue of events, for he en-
from the collections made by the command of Con- deavours, like Thucydides, Polybius, and Tacitus,
stantine Porphyrogenitus. A few more fragments to trace the events to their causes, and to make us
have recently been published by F. Haase (Dionis see the motives of men's actions. In his endea-
Cassii librorum deperditorum fragmenta, Bonn, vours to make us see the connexions of occurrences
1840, 8vo. ), who found them in a Paris MS. It he sometimes even neglects the chronological order,
must further be observed, that Zonaras, in his like his great models. But with all these excel-
Annals, chiefly, though not solely, followed the lences, Dion Cassius is the equal neither of Thucy-
authority of Dion Cassius, so that, to some ex- dides nor of Tacitus, though we may admit that his
tent, his Annals may be regarded as an epi- faults are to a great extent rather those of his age
tome of Dion Cassius. There is a considerable than of his individual character as an historian.
fragment commonly considered as a part of the He had been trained in the schools of the rhetori-
35th book, which however more probably belongs cians, and the consequences of it are visible in his
to the 36th, and from this book onward to the 54th history, which is not free from a rhetorical tinge,
the work is extant complete, and embraces the especially in the speeches which are introduced in
history from the wars of Lucullus and Cn. Pompey it. They may not be pure inventions, and may
against Mithridates, down to the death of Agrippa, have an historical groundwork, but their form is
B. c. 10. The subsequent books, from 55 to 60, / rhetorical ; though we must own that they are
have not come to us in their original form, for there among the best rhetorical productions of the time.
are several passages quoted from these books which in the formation of his style he appears to have
are not now to be found them; and we there- endeavoured to imitate the classic writers of ancient
fore have in all probability only an abridgment Greece; but his language is nevertheless full of pe-
made by some one either before or after the culiarities, barbarisms, and Latinisms, probably ine
time of Xiphilinus. From book 61 to 80 we have consequence of his long residence in Italy; and the
only the abridgment made by Xiphilinus in the praise which Photins (Bib! . Cod. 7 l) bestows upon
eleventh century, and some other epitomes which him for the clearness of his style, must be greatly
were probably made by the same person who epi- modified, for it is often harsh and heavy, and Dion
tomized the portion from the 55th to the 60th seems to have written as he spoke, without any
book. A considerable fragment of the 71st book attempt at elegance or refinement. (See the excel-
was found by A. Mai in a Latin translation in lent essay of Reimarus, De Vita et Scriptis Cassii
the Vatican library, of which a German version Dionis, appended to his edition ; R. Wilmans, De
was published anonymously (Braunschweig, 1832, Fontibus ct Auctoritate Dionis Cassü, Berlin, 1835,
8vo,); but its genuineness is not quite established. | 8v0. ; Schlosser, in a dissertation prefixed to Lo-
Another important fragment of the 75th book was renz's German translation of Dion, Jena, 1826, 3
discovered by J. Morelli, and printed first at Bas- vols. 8vo. ; and the brief but admirable character-
sano, and afterwards (1800) at Paris, in folio, istic of Dion by Niebuhr in his “Lectures on Roman
uniform with Reimarus's edition of Dion Cassius. Hist. ” edited by Dr. Schmitz, i. pp. 72–78. )
Notwithstanding these great losses, we possess The work of Dion Cassius was first published
a sufficient portion of the work to enable us to in a Latin translation by N. Leonicenus, Venice,
form a correct estimate of its value. It contains 1526; and the first edition of the Greek original
an abundance of materials for the later history of is that of R. Stephens (Paris, 1548, fol. ), which
the republic and for a considerable period of the contains from book 35 to 60. H. Stephens then
empire, for some portions of which it is our only gave a new edition with a Latin translation by
source of information. In the first of the fragments Xy lander. (Geneva, 1591, fol. ) The epitome of
published by A. Mai, Dion distinctly states, that Xiphilinus from book 60 to 80 was first printed
he had read nearly everything which had been in the edition of Leunclavius. (Frankfurt, 1592,
written on the history of Rome, and that he did and Hanau, 1606, fol. ) After the fragments and
not, like a mere compiler, put together what he eclogae collected by Ursinus and Valesius had
found in other writers, but that he weighed his been published, J. A. Fabricius formed the plan of
authorities, and exercised his judgment in selecting preparing a complete and comprehensive edition
what he thought fit for a place in his work. This of Dion Cassius; but his death prevented the
assertion of the author himself is perfectly justified completion of his plan, which was carried oui by
by the nature and character of lis history, for it is his son-in-law, 11. S. Reimarus, who published his
nianifest everywhere that he had acquired a tho- | edition at Hamburg, 1750—52, in 2 vols. fol


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DION.
1031
DION.
a
The Greek text is not much improved in this edi- | perienced before, he returned to Prusa about A. D.
tion, but the commentary and the indexes are of 100. But the petty spirit he found prevailing
Very great value. The Latin translation which it there, which was jealous of his mcrits and distinc-
contains is made up of those of Xylander and cious, and attributed his good actions to impure
Leunclavius. A more recent edition is that of motives (Orat. l. p. 254, dc. ), soon diagnisted him
Surma in 9 vols. (Leipzig, 1821, 8vo. ), the ninth with his fellow-citizens, and he agnin went to Rome.
volume of which (published in 18-13) contains the Trajan continued to treat him with the greatest
Bxcerpta Vaticana," which had first been disco distinction : liis kindly disposition gained him
vered and published by A. Mai. (Script. Vet. Nor. many eminent friends, such as Apollonius of
Culloct. ii. p. 1:35, dc. , p. 527, &c. ) [L. S. ] Tyana and Euphrates of Tyre, and his oratory the
DIOX CHRYSOʻSTOMUS, that is, Dion the admiration of all. In this manner he spent his
golden-mouthed, a surname which lie owed to liis last years, and died at Rome about a. D. 117.
great talents as an orator. lle bore also the sur- Dion Chrysostomus is one of the most eminent
name Cocceianus (Plin. Epist. x. 85, 86), which he among the Greek rhetoricians and sophists. This
derived from the emperor Cocceius Nerva, with is the opinion not only of the ancients who have
whom he was comected by intimate friendship. written about him, such as Philostratus, Synesius,
(Orut. xlv. p. 513. ) Dion Chrysostomus was born and Photius, but it is also contimmed by the eighty
at Prusa in Bithynia, about the middle of the first orations of his which are still extant, and which
century of our eril
, and belonged to a distinguished were the only ones known in the time of Pho-
equestrian family.
Reimarus has rendered it very tius, who, however, enumerates them in a some-
probable that a daughter of his was the mother of what different order from that in which they now
Dion Cassius, the historian. His father, Pusicrates, stand. These orations are for the most part the
seems to have bestowed great care on his son productions of his later years, and there are very few,
Dion's education and the carly training of his if any, among them that can with certainty be at-
mind; but he appears to have acquired part of his tributed to the early period of his life. They are
knowledge in travels, for we know that he visited more like essays on political, moral, and philoso-
Egypt at an early period of his life. At first he phical subjects than real orations, of which they
occupied himself in his native place, where he held have only the form. We find among them dóeyou
important offices, with the composition of speeches | περί βασιλείας ΟΓ λόγοι βασιλικοί, four orations
and other rhetorico-sophistical essays, but on per- addressed to Trajan on the virtues of a sovereign ;
ceiving the futility of such pursuits the abandoned | Διογένης ή περί τυραννίδος, on the troubles to
them, and devoted himself with great zeal to the which men expose themselves by deserting the
study of philosophy: he did not, however, confine path of nature, and on the difficulties which a so-
himself to any particular sect or school, nor did he vereign has to encounter ; essays on slavery and
give himself up to any profound speculations, his freedom; on the means of attaining eminence as an
object being rather to apply the doctrines of phi- orator ; further, political discourses addressed to
losophy to the purposes of practical life, and more various towns which he sometimes praises and
especially to the administration of public affairs, sometimes blames, but always with great modera-
and thus to bring about a better state of things. tion and wisdom; on subjects of ethics and prac-
The Stoic and Platonic philosophies, however, ar tical philosophy, which he treats in a popular
pear to have had the greatest charms for him. and attractive manner; and lastly, orations on
Notwithstanding these useful and peaceful pur- mythical subjects and show-speeches. Besides these
suiis, he was looked upon in his native place with eighty orations we have fragments of fifteen others.
suspicion and hostility (Orat. xlvi. p. 212, &c. ), Suidas, in enumerating the works of Dion Cassius,
which induced him to go to Rome. Here he drew mentions one on the Getae, which Casaubon was
upon himself the hatred of Domitian, who had so inclined to attribute to Dion Chrysostomus, on ac-
great an aversion to philosophers, that by a senatus- count of a passage in Philostratus (l'it. Soph. i. 7),
consultum all were expelled from Rome and Italy, who says, “ how fit Dion (Chrysostomus) was for
and Dion found himself obliged to quit Rome in se- writing history, is evident from his Getica. ” There
cret. (Orat. xlvi. p. 215, xiii
. p. 418. ). On the ad- are extant also five letters under the name of Dion,
vice of the Delphic oracle, it is said, he put on the and addressed to one Rufus. They are published
attire of a beggar, and with nothing in his pocket in Boissonade's Ad Marini lit. Procł. p. 85, &c. ,
but a copy of Plato's Phaedon and Demosthenes's and some critics are inclined to consider them as
oration on the Embassy, he undertook a journey to productions of Dion Chrysostomus. All the extant
the countries in the north and east of the Roman orations of Dion are distinguished for their refined
empire. He thus visited Thrace, Mysia, Scythia, and elegant style; the author most successfully imi-
and the country of the Getae, and owing to the tated the classic writers of Greece, such as Plato, De-
power and wisdom of his orations, he met every mosthenes, Hyperides, and Aeschines. His ardent
where with a kindly reception, and did much study of those models, combined with his own emi-
good. (Orat. xxxvi. p. 74; comp. xiii. p. 418. ) nent talents, his firin and pleasing voice, and his
In A. D. 96, when Domitian was murdered, Dion skill in extempore speaking, raised him at once
used his influence with the army stationed on the above all contemporary rhetoricians. His style is
frontier in favour of his friend Nerva, and seems throughout clear, and, generally speaking, free from
to have returned to Rome immediately after his artificial embellishment, though he is not always
accession. (Orat. xlv. p. 202. ) Nerva's successor, able to escape from the influence of the Asiatic
Trajan, entertained the highest esteem for Dion, school of rhetoric. His sentences are often inter-
and shewed him the most marked favour, for he is rupted by the insertion of parenthetical clauses, and
said to have often visited him, and even to have his prooemia are frequently too long in proportion
allowed him to ride by his side in his golden tri- to the other parts of his discourses. · Dion Chry-
umphal car. Having thus received the most ample sostomus,” says Niebuhr (Lectures on Rom. Hist.
satisfaction for the unjust treatment he had ex-'ji. p. 263, ed. Schmitz), was an author of wi-
66


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1032
DIONYSIADES.
DIONYSIUS.
common talent, and it is much to be regretted that " Tragic Pleiad" of the Alexandrian grammarians.
he belonged to the rhetoricians of that unfortunate (Fabric. č. p. 296. )
[P. S. ]
age. It makes one sad to see him waste his bril- DIONY'SICLES (ALOvvolkañs), a statuary of
liant oratorical powers on insignificant subjects. Miletus, who made the statue of Democrates of
Some of his works are written in an excellent and Tenedos, a victor in wrestling at Olympia. (Paus.
beautiful language, which is pure Attic Greek and vi. 17. $ 1. )
[P. S. ]
without affectation : it is clear that he had made DIONYSIDOʻRUS (Alovvolowpos), an Alex-
the classical language of Athens his own, and he andrian grammarian of the school of Aristarchus,
handled it as a master. He appears in all he wrote is quoted in the Venetian scholia on the Iliad (ii.
as a man of an amiable character, and free from 111), and probably wrote on the Homeric poems.
the vanity of the ordinary rhetoricians, though one (Villoison, Proley. ad 1. p. 30. ) [L. S. ]
perceives the silent consciousness of his powers. He DIONYSIODO’RUS. 1. A statuary and worker
was an unaffected Platonic philosopher, and lived in silver, and a disciple of Critias. (Plin. xxxiv. 8.
with his whole soul in Athens, which was to him a s. 19. $ 25. )
world, and which made him forget Rome, its em- 2. Of Colophon, a painter of some note. (Plin.
peror, everything else. All this forms a very xxxv. 11. s. 40. § 42. )
[P. S. ]
charming feature in his character. Whenever he DIONY'SIUS (Alovúolos), tyrant of HERAC-
touches upon the actual state of things in which he LEIA on the Euxine. He was a son of Clearchus,
lived, he shews his master-mind. He was the first who had assumed the tyranny in his native place,
writer after Tiberius that greatly contributed to- and was succeeded by his son Timotheus. After
wards the revival of Greek literature. ” (Comp. the death of the latter, Dionysius succeeded in the
Philostratus, Fit. Soph. i. 7; Photius, Bibl. Cod. tyranny, about the time of the battle of Chaeroneia,
209; Synesius, Δίων ή περί της κατ' αυτόν δια- B. C. 338. After the destruction of the Persian
gwrns ; Suid. s. 2. Aíw; Westermann, Gesch. d. empire by Alexander the Great, Dionysius at-
Griech. Beredts. $ 87, &c. , and Beilage x. p. 317, tempted to extend his dominions in Asia. In the
&c. ; Emperius, de Erilio Dionis Chrisostomi, Braun. meantime, some of the citizens of Heracleia, who
schweig, 1810, 850. )
had been driven into exile by their tyrants, ap-
Passing over the editions of separate orations of plied to Alexander to restore the republican go-
Dion Chrysostomus, we mention only those which vernment at Heraclein, but Dionysius, with the
contain all of them. The first was edited by D. assistance of Alexander's sister, Cleopatra, con-
Paravisinus at Milan (1476, 4to. ), and was fol- trived to prevent any steps being taken to that
lowed by that of Aldus Manutius. (Venice, 1551, effect. But still he does not appear to have felt
8vo. ) The next edition of importance is that of very safe in his position, as we may conjecture
Cl. Morel (Paris, 1601), which was reprinted in from the extreme delight with which he received
1623 with à Latin translation of Naogeorgius and the news of Alexander's death, in consequence of
notes by Morel. A very good critical edition is which he erected a statue of evduuia, that is, joy
that of Reiske, Leipzig, 1784, 2 vols. 8vo. The or peace of mind. The exiled Heracleans now ap-
first volume of a new critical edition by Emperius plied to Perdiccas, against whom Dionysius endea-
appeared in 1844.
[L. S. ] voured to secure himself by joining his enemies.
DIONAEA (Alcvala), a metronymic form of Dionysius therefore married Amastris, the former
Dione, and applied to her daughter Aphrodite. wife of Craterus, who secured to him considerable
(Orph. Arg. 1320 ; Virg. Aen. iii. 19. ) The name advantages. A friendship with Antigonus was
is also applied as an epithet to things which were formed by assisting him in his war against Asan-
sacred to her, such as the dove. (Stat. Silv. iii. 5. der, and Ptolemy, the nephew of Antigonus, mar-
80. )
[L. S. ] ried Dionysius's daughter by his first wife. Dio-
DIO'NE (Aøvn), a female Titan, a daughter of nysius thus remained in the undisturbed possession
Oceanus and Tethys (Hesiod. Theog. 353), and, ac of the tyranny for many years. In B. c. 306,
cording to others, of Uranus and Ge, or of Aether when the surviving generals of Alexander assumed
and Ge. (Hygin. Fab. Praef. ; Apollod. i. 1. $ 3. ) the title of kings, Dionysius followed their example,
She was beloved by Zeus, by whom she became the but he died soon after. He was an unusually fat
mother of Aphrodite. (Apollod. i. 3. & i. ; Hom. 1l. man, which increased at length to such a degree
5. 370, &c. ) When Aphrodite was wounded by that he could take no food, which was therefore
Diomedes, Dione received her daughter in Olympus, introduced into his stomach by artificial means.
and pronounced the threat respecting the punish- At last, however, he was choked by his own fat.
ment of Diomedes. (Hom. Il. v. 405. ) Dione was He is said to have been the mildest and justest of
present, with other divinities, at the birth of Apollo all the tyrants that had ever lived. He was suc-
and Artemis in Delos. (Hom. Hymn.