Publisher's Synopsis
Excerpt from The Historical Annals of Cornelius Tacitus, Vol. 3 of 3: With Supplements
Ill. Nero pronounced the funeral orationzu' He re presented, in the brightest colours, the illustrious birth of the deceased emperor, the number of' his consul ships, and' the triumphal honours of his ancestors. On these topics he dwelt with propriety, and com manded attention. The taste of Claudius for the libe ral arts, and the undisturbed tranquillity that prevailed throughout his reign, afforded ample room for pane gyric, and the orator was heard with pleasure.' But when the judgment and political wisdom of Claudius were mentioned with praise and decorations of lan guage, the ridicule was too strong, and' norie could refrain from laughter. And yet the speech was writ ten by Seneca, m a style of elegance peculiar to that amiable writer, who possessed a vein of wit and fancy, that charmed the taste. Of the age in which he lived. It was observed, on this occasion, by men advanced in life, who love, at leisure, to compare, the past with the present times, that of all the emperors, Nero was the first, who was content to be' the organ of another 8 eloquence. In Cwsar the dictator the most eminent orators found an illustrious rival. Augustus had a' flow of language, easy, clear, and copious, well suited' to the dignity of a prince. Precision' was the talent' of Tiberius; and if his meaning was sometimes ob scure, it was when he chose to be dark and impene trable. The confused and turbulent genius of Cali gula did not transfuse itself into his discourse. Even in Claudius, when he came with a speech prepared and studied, there was he want of elegance. Nero, in the prime of life, took a different turn, and, with lively parts, applied himself to other objects. Engrav ing, painting, music, and horsemanship, were his favourite pursuits. At intervals he was fond of poetry, and his veises showed that he had, at least, a tincture of letters. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
