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

UCAIEGON. VEGETIUS. 1235
tolerably good terms, though probably neither of I at Troy, whose house was burnt at the destruction
them forgot or forgave the injuries he had received of the city. (Honm. I. iii. 147; Virg. Aen. ii.
from the other. Soon afterwards Vatinius went 312.) [L. S.]
to Gaul, where we find him serving as one of VECCUS, or BECCUS, JOANNES
Caesar's legates in B.c. 51. He accompanied his (Be'icKos, BEKos, or BEKmcv), an ecclesiastic of some
patron in the civil war, and during the campaign celebrity in the latter part of the thirteenth cenin Greece, B. C. 48, was sent by Caesar with pro- tury of our era. From the office of Clartophylax
posals of peace to the Pompeian army. He was in the great church of Constantinople, he was elenot present at the battle of Pharsalia, as he had vated to the patriarchate of that city, by Michael
shortly before returned to Brundusium by Caesar's Palaeologus, in A. D. 1274, on account of his
orders; and about the same time as the battle of friendly dispositions towards the Latin Church.
Pharsalia, he vigorously defended Brundusium Veccus had at first been warmly opposed to the
against D. Laelius, who had attacked it with part Latins, but his feelings towards them were changed
of the Pompeian fleet. In return for these ser- by the perusal of the writings of Nicephorus
vices Caesar raised Vatinius to the consulship, Blemmyda. He continued patriarch of (Constantiwhich he held for a few days as consul suffectus nople until the death of the emperor Michael, in
at the end of December B. c. 47. At the beginning A. D. 1283, when the ultra-Greek party regained
of the following year he was sent into Illyricum to their ascendancy, and Veccus found it necessary
oppose M. Octavius, who held that country with a to resign his episcopate. He spent the remainder
considerable force for the Pompeian party. Va- of his life in suffering persecution from the now
tinius carried on the war with success in Illyricum, dominant party, sometimes in exile and sometimes
was saluted as imperator by his soldiers, and ob- in prison, where he died in A. D. 1298. The most
tained the honour of a supplicatio from the senate virulent of his opponents and persecutors was
in B. C. 45. At this time some letters passed be- George of Cyprus. [GEORoCIUS, No. 20.]
tween him and Cicero, in which they wrote to one There are numerous writings by Veccus, chiefly
another with apparent cordiality. (Cic. ad Fam. on the points at issue between the Greek and Latir
v. 9-11.) Vatinius was still in Illyricum at the Churches, and in defence of his own conduct an
time of Caesar's death, B. C. 44, and at the be- seeking for their reconciliation. Several of these
ginning of the following year was compelled to works are published in the Graecia; Ort/odoxa of
surrender Dyrrhachium and his army to Brutus Leo Allatius; others exist only in MS.
who had obtained possession of Macedonia, be- This brief notice of Veccus is thought to be
cause his troops declared in favour of Brutus sufficient for the object of this work; for a full
(Dion Cass. xlvii. 21; Liv. Epit. 118; Vell. Pat. ii. account of his life and writings, the reader is re69); though Cicero (Phil. x. 6) and Appian (B. C. ferred to the authorities now quoted. (Cave,
iv. 75), probably with less truth, speak of it as IIist. Lilt. s. a. 1276, vol. ii. pp. 319, foll.; Faa voluntary act on the part of Vatinius. At any bric. Bibl. Graec. vol. xi. pp. 344, foll.; Schrockh,
rate Vatinius did not forfeit the favour of the tri- Clsristliclse Kirclengeschicihte, vol. xxix. pp. 435,
umvirs; for we learn from the Capitoline Fasti feoll., 446, feoll., 455, foll.) [P. S.]
that he triumphed on the last day of December,' VECTIE'NUS. [VETTIENUS.]
B. C. 43. This is the last time we hear ef Va- VE'CTIUS. All persons of this name are
tinius. (Cic. in Vatiniumi, passim, pro Sest. 53, 63, given under VETTIUS, which appears the more cor65, ad Q. Fr%. ii. 4, iii. 9. ~ 5, ad Alt. ii. 6, 7, Hirt. rect form.
B.G. viii. 46, Caes. B. C. iii. 19, 100; Appian, P. VE'DIUS, a great scamp, but nevertheless a
Illyr. 13, B. C. iv. 75; Dion Cass. xlii. 55, xlvii. friend of Pompey's. (Cic. ad Alt. vi. 1. ~ 25.)
21; Liv. Epit. 118; Vell. Pat. ii. 69; Cic. Phil. VE'DI[US A'QU1LA. [AQUILA.]
X. 5, 6.) VEIDIUS PO'LLIO. [POLLIO.]
3. VATINIUS, of Beneventum, was one of the VEGE'TIUS, FLA'VIUS RENA'TUS, devilest and mast hateful creatures of Nero's court, signated as Vir Illustris, to which some MSS. add
equally deformed in body and in mind. He was the title of Comes, is the author of a treatise Rei
originally a shoemaker's apprentice, next earned il'ilitaris Institutla, or Epitome Rei Militaris, dedihis living as one of the lowest kinds of scurrae or cated to the emperor Valentinian, known to be
buffoons, and finally obtained great power and the second of that name, from an allusion conwealth by accusing the most distinguished men in tained in the body of the work (i. 20) to Gratian,
the state. Dion Cassius relates a saying of his and to the unfortunate contests with the Goths.
which pleased Nero exceedingly. Well knowing The materials were derived, according to the dethe emperor's detestation of the senate, he said to claration of the writer himself (i. 8) from Cato
him on one occasion, " I hate you, Caesar, because the Censor, De Disciplina militari, from Cornelius
you are a senator." (Tac. Ann. xv. 34, Dial. de Celsus, from Frontinus, from Paternus, and from
Orat. 11, Hist. i. 37; Dion Cass. lxiii. 15.) A the imperial constitutions of Augustus, Trajan, and
certain kind of drinking-cups, having nasi or Hadrian. The work is divided into five books.
nozzles, bore the name of Vatinius, probably be- The first treats of the levying and training of recause he brought them into fashion. Juvenal cruits, including instructions for the' fortification of
alludes to a cup of this kind in the lines (v. 46, a camp; the second of the different classes into
foll.) - which soldiers are divided, and especially of the
"L Tu Beneventani sutoris nomen habentem organisation of the legion; the third of the operaSiccabis calicem nasorum quatuer," &c., tions of an army in the field; the fourth of the
attack arnd defence of fortresses; the fifth of
and Martial also in the Epigram (xiv. 96):*- marine warfare. In the earlier editions the whole
Vilia sutoris calicem monumenta Vatini of the above matter was comprehended in four
Accipe; sed nasus longior ille fuit." books; but Scriverius, on the authority of the best
UCA'LEGON (OvcKaAEXywY), one of the elders MSS., set apart as a fifth book all the chapters
4i 2