The historie of foure-footed beastes Describing the true and liuely figure of euery beast, with a discourse of their seuerall names, conditions, kindes, vertues (both naturall and medicinall) countries of their breed, their loue and hate to mankinde, and the wonderfull worke of God in their creation, preseruation, and destruction. Necessary for all diuines and students, because the story of euery beast is amplified with narrations out of Scriptures, fathers, phylosophers, physitians, and poets: wherein are declared diuers hyerogliphicks, emblems, epigrams, and other good histories, collected out of all the volumes of Conradus Gesner, and all other writers to this present day. By Edward Topsell.

Of the supposed Beast CACVS.

THere be some of the late writers, which take the cacus spoken of by Virgill in his eight book of Aeneids, to be a wilde Beast, which Virgill describeth in these words:

Hic spelunca; fuit vaslo submota recessu: [ 40] Solis inaccensam radijs semporque recenti Ora virum tristi pendebant pallida tabo. Ore vomens ignes magna se mole ferebat, nequeunt expleri corda tuendo Pectori semiferi atque extinctus faucibus ignes, Semihominis caci: facies quam dira tegebat caede tepebat humus foribusque affixa superbis: Huic monstro-vulcanus erat pater, &c.

That is, cacus was halfe a beast and halfe a man, who had a caue in the earth against the Sunne, his Denne replenished with the heades of men, and hee himselfe breathing [ 50] out fire, so that the earth was warmed with the slaughter of men slaine by him, whose slaughter he fastened vpon his owne doores, being supposed to be the sonne of Vulcan. And there be some that affirme this Cacus, to haue wasted and depopulated all Italy, and at length when Hercules had slaine Geryon, as he came out of Spaine thorough Italy with the Oxen which he had taken from Geryon, Cacus drew diuers of them into his

Caue by their tailes: but when Hercules missed daily some of his Cattell, and knewe not which way they strayed, at last he came to the Denne of Cacus: and seeing all the steppes stand forward by reason the Cattell were drawne in backeward, he departed; and going away, he heard the loughing of the Oxen for their fellowes, whereby he discouered the fraud of Cacus: whereuppon he presently ranne and tooke his club, the monster being within his Caue, closed vp the mouth thereof with a wonderfull great stone, and so hid himselfe for feare: but Hercules went to the toppe of the Mountaine and there digging downe the same, vntill he opened the Caue, then leaped in suddenly and slew the Mon∣ster, and recouered his Oxen.

But the truth is, this forged Cacus was a wicked seruant of Euander, which vsed great [ 10] robbery in the Mountaines, and by reason of his euill life was called cacus, for Ca••os in Greeke signifieth euill. He was said to breath forth fire because he burned vp their corne growing in the fields, and at last was betrayed of his owne sister; for which cause she was deified, and the Virgins of Vesta made Sacrifice to her: and therefore it shall be ydle to prosecute this fable any farther (as Albertus Magnus doth) it being like the fable of Alci∣da, which the Poets faine was a bird of the earth, and being inuincible burned vp al Phry∣gia, and at last was slaine by Minerua.