A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

420 AUGURINUS.
part in the defence of Coriolanus, who was brought
to trial in this year, but was unable to obtain his
acquittal. (Liv. ii. 34; Dionys. vii. 20, 27-32,
38, 60, 61.) In the victorious approach of Corio]anus to Rome at the head of the Volscian army,
Augurinus was one of the embassy sent to intercede with him on behalf of the city. (Dionys.
viii. 22, 23.)
2. P. MINucous AUGURINUS, consul B. c. 492,
was chiefly engaged in his consulship in obtaining
a supply of corn from different countries, on account
of the famine at Rome. (Liv. ii. 34; Dionys.
vii. 1; Oros. ii. 5.)
3. L. MINucIUS P. F. M. N. ESQUILINUS AuGURINUS, consul B. c. 458, carried on the war
against the Aequians, but through fear shut himself
up in his camp on the Algidus, and allowed the
enemy to surround him. He was delivered from
his danger by the dictator L. Quinctius Cincinnatus, who compelled him, however, to resign his
consulship. In the Fasti Capitolini we have one
of the inversions which are so common in Roman
history: in the Fasti, Augurinus is represented as
consul suffectus in place of one whose name is lost,
instead of being himself succeeded by another.
(Liv. iii. 25-29; Dionys. x. 22; Dion Cass. Frag.
xxxiv. 27, p. 140, ed. Reimar; Val. Max. ii.
7. ~ 7, v. 2. ~ 2; Flor. i. 11; Zonar. vii. 17;
Niebuhr, Rom. Hist. ii. n. 604.)
4. Q. MINucIus P. F. M. N. ESQUILINUS AuGURINUS, brother of No. 3, consul B. c. 457, had
the conduct of the war against the Sabines, but
could not do more than ravage their lands, as they
shut themselves up in their walled towns. (Liv.
iii. 30; Dionys. x. 26, 30.)
5. L. MINUCiUS AUGURINUS, was appointed
praefect of the corn-market (praefectus annonae)
in B. c- 439, in order to regulate the price of corn
and obtain a supply from abroad, as the people
were suffering from grievous famine. Sp. Maelius,
who distinguished himself by his liberal supplies of
corn to the people, was accused by the patricians
of aiming at the sovereignty; and Augurinus is
said to have disclosed his treasonable designs to
the senate. The ferment occasioned by the assassination of Maelius was appeased by Augurinus,
who is said to have gone over to the plebs from
the patricians, and to have been chosen by the
tribunes one of their body. It is stated, indeed,
that he was elected an eleventh tribune, as the
number of their body was full; but this seems incredible. That he passed over to the plebs, however, is confirmed by the fact, that we find subsequently members of his family tribunes of the
plebs. Augurinus also lowered the price of corn
in three market days, fixing as the maximum an as
for a modius. The people, in their gratitude, presented him with an ox having its horns gilt, and
erected a statue to his honour outside the Porta

AUGUSTINUS.
preceding coin of the Minucia gens. The obverse
represents the head of Pallas winged: the reverse
a column surmounted by a statue, which is not
clearly delineated in the annexed cut, with ears of
corn springing up from its base. The inscription
is c. MINVCI. C. F. AVGVRINI., with ROMA at the
top. (Eckhel, v. p. 254.)
6. Ti. MINUClus AUGURINUS, consul B. c. 305,
the last year of the Samnite war, was said in some
annals to have received a mortal wound in battle.
(Liv. ix. 44; Diod. xx. 81.)
7. M. MINUCIus (AUGURINUS), tribune of the
plebs, B. c. 216, introduced the bill for the creation
of the triumviri mensarii. (Liv. xxiii. 21.)
8. C. MINUCius AUGURINUS, tribune of the
plebs, B. c. 187, proposed the imposition of a fine
upon L. Scipio Asiaticus, and demanded that Scipio
should give security (praedes). As Scipio, however, refused to do so, Augurinus ordered him to
be seized and carried to prison, but was unable to
carry his command into effect in consequence of
the intercession of his colleague, Tib. Sempronius
Gracchus, the father of Tib. and C. Gracchi.
(Gell. vii. 19.) A different account of this affair
is given in Livy. (xxxviii. 55--60.)
9. TI. MINUCIUS (AUGURINUS) MOLLICULUS,
was praetor peregrinus B. c. 180, and died of the
pestilence which visited Rome in that year. (Liv.
xl. 35, 37.)
AUGURI'NUS, SE'NTIUS, a poet in the
time of the younger Pliny, who wrote short poems,
such as epigrams, idylls, &c., which he called pocmatin, and which were in the style of Catullus
and Calvus. He was an intimate friend of the
younger Pliny, whom he praised in his verses;
and Pliny in return represented Augurinus as one
of the first of poets. One of his poems in praise of
Pliny is preserved in a letter of the latter. (Plin.
Ep. iv. 27, ix. 8.)
AUGUSTI'NUS, AURE'LIUS, ST., the most
illustrious of the Latin fathers, was born on the
13th of November, A. D. 354, at Tagaste, an inland
town in Numidia, identified by D'Anville with the
modern Tajelt. His father, Patricius, who died
about seventeen years after the birth of Augustin,
was originally a heathen, but embraced Christianity late in life. Though poor, he belonged to the
curiales of Tagaste. (August. Conf. ii. 3.) He
is described by his son as a benevolent but hottempered man, comparatively careless of the
morals of his offspring, but anxious for his improvement in learning, as the means of future
success in life. Monnica,* the mother of Augustin, was a Christian of a singularly devout and
gentle spirit, who exerted herself to the utmost
in training up her son in the practice of piety;
but his disposition, complexionally ardent and
headstrong, seemed to bid defiance to her efforts. He has given, in his Confessions, a vivid
picture of his boyish follies and vices,-his love of
play, his hatred of learning, his disobedience to his
parents, and his acts of deceit and theft. It would
indeed be absurd to infer from this recital that he
was a prodigy of youthful wickedness, such faults
being unhappily too common at that early age.
None, however, but a very shallow moralist will
treat these singular disclosures with ridicule, or

Trigemina, for which every body subscribed an
ounce of brass. (Liv. iv. 12-16; Plin. H. N.
xviii. 4, xxxiv. 11; Niebuhr, Rom. Hist. ii. p. 423,
&c.) This circumstance is commemorated in the

"* For the orthography of this name, see BTihr,
Geschiclte der Rimischen Literatur, Supplement,
vol. ii. p. 225. and note p. 228.