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

472 BASSUS.
were discovered by Sextus, who, however, forgave
him on his alleging that he wanted to collect troops
in order to assist MIithridates of Pergamus. Soon
afterwards, however, Bassus spread a report that
Caesar had been defeated and killed in Africa, and
that he himself had been appointed governor of
Syria. He forthwith seized upon Tyre, and
marched against Sextus; but being defeated by the
latter, he corrupted the soldiers of his opponent,
who was accordingly put to death by his own troops.
On the death of Sextus, his whole army went
over to Bassus, with the exception of some troops
which were wintering in Apameia and which fled
to Cilicia. Bassus followed them, but was unable
to gain them over to his side. On his return he
took the title of praetor, B. c. 46, and settled down
in the strongly fortified town of Apameia, where he
maintained himself for three years. He was first
besieged by C. Antistius Vetus, who was, however,
compelled to retire with loss, as the Arabian Alchaudonius and the Parthians came to the assistance of Bassus. It was one of the charges
brought against Cicero's client, De'toraus, that he
had intended to send forces to Bassus. After the
retreat of Antistius, Statius Murcus was sent
against Bassus with three legions, but he too received a repulse, and was obliged to call to his
assistance Marcius Crispus, the governor of Bithynia, who brought three legions more. With
these six legions Murcus and Crispus kept Bassus
besieged in Apameia till the arrival of Cassius in
Syria in the year after Caesar's death, B. c. 43.
The troops of Bassus, as well as those of Murcus
and Crispus, immediately went over to Cassius,
and Bassus, who was unwilling to join Cassius,
was dismissed uninjured. (Dion Cass. xlvii. 26
-28; Appian, B. C. iii. 77, 78, iv. 58, 59; Cie.
pro Deit. 8, 9, ad Att. xiv. 9, xv. 13, ad Fam. xi.
1, Philip. xi. 13, ad Fam. xii. 11, 12; Liv. Epit.
114, 121; Veil. Pat. ii. 69; Strab. xvi. p. 752;
Joseph. Ant. xiv. 11, B. J. i. 10. ~ 10.)
Appian gives (1. c.) a different account of the
origin of the revolt in Syria under Bassus. According to Appian's statement, Bassus was appointed by Caesar commander of the legion under
the governor Sex. Julius. But as Sextus gave
himself up to pleasure and carried the legion about
with him everywhere, Bassus represented to him
the impropriety of his conduct, but his reproofs
were received with contempt; and shortly afterwards Sextus ordered him to be dragged into his
presence, because he did not immediately come
when he was ordered. Hereupon the soldiers
rose against Sextus, who was killed in the tumult.
Fearing the anger of Caesar, the soldiers resolved
to rebel, and compelled Bassus to join them.
BASSUS, CAESIUS. 1. A Roman lyric poet,
who flourished about the middle of the first century.
Quintilian (x. 1. ~ 95) observes, "At Lyricorum
idem Horatius fere solus legi dignus.... Si quemdam adjicere velis, is erit Caesius Bassus, quemn
nuper vidimus: sed eum longe praecedunt ingenia
viventium." Two lines only of his compositions
have been preserved, one of these, a dactylic hexameter from the second book of his Lyrics, is to be
found in Priscian (x. p. 897, ed. Putsch); the other
is quoted by Diomedes (iii. p. 513, ed. Putsch.) as
an example of Molossian verse. The sixth satire
of Persius is evidently addressed to this Bassus;
and the old scholiast informs us, that he was destrayed along with his villa in A. D. 79 by the erup

BASSUS.
tion of Vesuvius which overwhelmed Herculanemni
and Pompeii. He must not be confounded with
2. Caesius Bassus, a Roman Grammarian of uncertain date, the author of a short tract entitled
"Ars Caesii Bassi de Metris," which is given inthe " Grammaticae Latinae Auctores Antiqui" of
Putschius (Hanov. 1605), pp. 2663-2671. [W.R.]
BASSUS, CASSIA'NUS, surnamed Scholasticus, was in all probability the compiler of the
Geoponica (FTecorovic), or work on Agriculture,
which is usually ascribed to the emperor Constantine Porphyrogeneta. (A.. D. 911-959.) Cassianus Bassus appears to have compiled it by the
command of this emperor, who has thus obtained
the honour of the work Of Bassus we know nothing, save that he lived at Constantinople, and
was born at Maratonymum, probably a place in
Bithynia. (Geopon. v. 6, comp. v. 36.) The work
itself, which is still extant, consists of twenty
books, and is compiled from various authors, whose
names are always given, and of whom the following is an alphabetical list:-SEx. JULIus AFRiCANUS; ANATOLICUS of Berytus [p. 161, b.];
APPULEIUS; ARATUS of Soli; ARISTOTELES, the
philosopher; DAMOGERON; DEMOCRITUS; DIDYMUS of Alexandria; CAssivs DIONsIUS of
Utica; DIOPHANEs of Nicaea; FLORENTINUS;
FRONTO; HIEROCLES, governor of Bithynia under
Diocletian; HIPPOCRATES, of Cos, a veterinary
surgeon, at the time of Constantine the Great;
LEONTINUS or LEONTIUS; NESTOR, a poet in the
time of Alexander Severus; PAMPHIL US of Alexandria; PARAMUS; PELAGONIUs; PTOLEMAEUS
of Alexandria; the brothers Q UINTILIUS (Gordianus and Maximus); TARENTINUS; THEOMNESTUS; VARRno; ZOROASTER. Cassianus Bassus
has contributed only two short extracts of his own,
namely, cc. 5 and 36 of the fifth book.
The various subjects treated of in the Geoponica
will best appear from the contents of the different
books, which are as follow: 1. Of the atmosphere
and the rising and setting of the stars. 2. Of
general matters appertaining to agriculture, and of
the different kinds of corn. 3. Of the various
agricultural duties suitable to each month. 4 and
5. Of the cultivation of the vine. 6-8. Of the
making of wine. 9. Of the cultivation of the
olive and the making of oil. 10-12. Of horticulture. 13. Of the animals and insects injurious
to plants. 14. Of pigeons and other birds. 15.
Of natural sympathies and antipathies, and of
the management of bees. 16. Of horses, asses,
and camels. 17. Of the breeding of cattle. 18. Of
the breeding of sheep. 19. Of dogs, hares, deer,
pigs, and of salting meat. 20. Of fishes.
The Geoponica was first published at Venice in
1538, 8vo., in a Latin translation made by Janus
Cornarius. The Greek text appeared in the following year, 1539, 8vo., at Basel, edited by J.
Alex. Brassicanus from a manuscript in the imperial library in Vienna. The next edition was
published at Cambridge, 1704, 8vo., edited by
Needham, and the last at Leipzig, 1781, 4 vols.
8vo., edited by Niclas.
BASSUS, CESE'LLIUS, a Roman knight,
and a Carthaginian by birth, on the faith of a
dream promised to discover for Nero immense
treasures, which had been hidden by Dido when
she fled to Africa. Nero gave, full credit to this
tale, and despatched vessels to carry the treasures
to Rome; but Bassus, after digging about in every