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all unchafte. Thus much may give us light after what fort of Bookes were prohibited among the Greeks. The Romans alfo for many ages train'd up only to a military roughnes, resembling moft the Lacedæmonian guife, knew of learning little but what their twelve Tables, and the Pontifick College with their Augurs and Flamins taught them in Religion and Law, fo unacquainted with other learning, that when Carneades and Critolaus, with the Stoick Diogenes comming Embaffadors to Rome, tooke thereby occafion to give the City a taft of their Philofophy, they were fufpected for feducers by no leffe a man then Cato the Cenfor, who mov'd it in the Senat to

difiniffe them fpeedily, and to banish all fuch

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fuch Attick bablers out of Italy. But Scipio and others of the nobleft Senators withftood him and his old Sabin aufterity; honour'd and admir'd the men; and the Cenfor himself at last in his old age fell to the ftudy of that whereof before hee was fo fcrupulous. And yet at the fame time Navius and Plautus the firft Latine comedians had fill'd the City with all the borrow'd Scenes of Menander and Philemon. Then began to be confider'd there alfo what was to be don to libellous books and Authors; for Navius was quickly caft into prifon for his unbridl'd pen, and releas'd by the Tribunes upon his recantation: We read alfo that libels were burnt, and the makers punisht by Auguftus. The like feverity no doubt

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was us'd if ought were impiously writt'n against their efteemed gods. Except in thefe two points, how the world went in Books, the Magiftrat kept no reckning. And therefore Lucretius without impeachment verfifies his Epicurism to Memmius, and had the honour to be fet forth the fecond time by Cicero fo great a father of the Commonwealth; although himfelfe difputes against that opinion in his own writings. Nor was the Satyricall fharpneffe, or naked plainnes of Lucilius, or Catullus, or Flaccus, by any order prohibited. And for matters of State, the ftory of Titus Livius, though it extoll'd that part which Pompey held," was not therefore fuppreft by Octavius Cafar of the other Faction. But that

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Nafo was by him banifht in his old age, for the wanton Poems of his youth, was but a meer covert of State over fome fecret cause and befides, the Books were neither banisht nor call'd in. From hence we fhall meet with little else but tyranny in the Roman Empire, that we may not marvell, if not so often bad, as good Books were filenc't. Ifhall therefore deem to have bin large anough in producing what among the ancients was punishable to write, fave only which, all other arguments were free to treat on.

By this time the Emperors were become Chriftians, whofe difcipline in this point I doe not finde to have bin more fevere then what was formerly in prac

tice. The Books of thofe whom they took to be grand Hereticks were examin'd, refuted, and condemn'd in the generall Councels; and not till then were prohibited, or burnt by autority of the Emperor. As for the writings of Heathen authors, unleffe they were plaine invectives againft Chriftianity, as thofe of Porphyrius and Proclus, they met with no interdict that can be cited, till about the year 400, in a Carthaginian Councel, wherein Bishops themselves were forbid to read the Books of Gentiles, but Herefies they might read: while others long before them on the contrary fcrupl'd more the Books of Hereticks, then of Gentiles. And that the primitive Councels and Bishops were wont only to declare

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