observations upon those days, and the Greeks and Romans in imitation of them, have done the like. Hesiod was the first, who made a Catalogue of lucky and fatal days, intituled 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, where the fifth day of the month is noted for an unlucky day, because, as he says, the Furies of Hell are walking that day upon the Earth: wherefore Virgil tells us in the first Book of his Georgicks.
—Quintam fuge, pallidus Orcus,
Eumenidesque satae: tum partu Terra nefando
Caeumque Japetumque ••reat, saevumque Typhoea,
Et conjuratos caelum rescindere fratres.
The opinion of Plato was, that the fourth day of the month was lucky, Hesiod assures that it was the seventh day was fortunate, because it was Apollo's Birth-day; and that the 8th, 9th, 11th, and 12th days were also lucky.
The Romans accounted also some days lucky and others fatal. And the following days after the Kalends, Nones and Ides were reckoned fatal and unfortunate. And this o∣pinion was grounded upon the answer of a Southsayer. For the Military Tribunes Vi∣gilius, Manlius, and Caelius Posthumius, seeing that the Common wealth suffered always some loss, presented a Petition to the Senate in the year 363, desiring them to enquire about the cause of these misfortunes. The Senate sent for a Southsayer, called L. Aquinius, who be∣ing come into the Assembly, they asked him his opinion about the same; he answered, that when Q. Sulpitius, one of the Military Tribunes, engaged the Gauls with so bad suc∣cess near the River Allia, he had offered Sa∣crifices to the Gods the next day after the Ides of July; that the Fabians were killed at Cremera, because they engaged the Enemy upon the like day. After this answer the Senate referred the consideration of the whole Affair to the Colledge of the Pontiffs, and desired them to give their opinion there∣in. The Pontiffs forbad to engage the Ene∣my, or to undertake any thing upon the next day after the Kalends, Nones and Ides, as Livy reports. Besides these days that were accounted unlucky, there were also some o∣ther days, that every particular man esteem∣ed unfortunate in respect to his own person. Augustus never attempted to perform any thing upon the day of Nones, others upon the fourth of Kalends, Nones and Ides. Vitelli∣us having obtained the dignity of the high Pontiff, made Ordinances concerning Reli∣gion upon the 15th of the Kalends of August, which were ill received, because of the loss they had suffered upon that day at Cremera and Allia as Suetonius relates in the life of that Emperor, and Tatitus in the second Book of his History, c. 24.
They took for a bad omen, that being made High Priest, he ordained something concerning Religion upon the eighteenth day of July, which is fatal, because of the Battles of Allia and Cremera.
There was also many other days account∣ed fatal by the Romans, as the day that they offered Sacrifices to the Ghost of deceased persons; the day following after the Feasts called Volcanalia, the fourth before the Nones of October, the sixth of the Ides of November, the Holyday called Lemuria in May; the Nones of July, called Crapotinae; the Ides of March, because Julius Caesar was killed that day; the fourth before the Nones of August, because of the defeat of Cannae that happened upon that day; the Holydays of the Latins called Saturnalia, and many others recorded in the Kalendar.
However, some Romans slighted those ri∣diculous and superstitious observations; for Lucullus answered to those who endeavoured to dissuade him from engaging Tigranes, be∣cause upon the same day the Cimbri had rout∣ed the Army of Caepio,
I, said he, I will make it of a good omen for the Romans.
Julius Caesar transported his Forces over into
Africa, tho the
Augurs opposed his design.
Dion of
Syracusa engaged
Dyonisius the Tyrant, and overcame him one day when the Moon was eclipsed. And so did many others.