great measure lost, and the feelings of patriotism, which are ever most ardent in a small state, could there have scarcely been excited.
In his domestic capacity, Atticus was equally in-' teresting. He was remarkably assiduous in the ma nagement of his private affairs, taking charge not on ly of his own, but of those of Cicero, Marius, Hor tensius, Cato, and others. Though his revenue was considerable, his expenses were ,extremely moderate. He had no magnificent equipage, nor costly villa : in all things he was partial to the simplicity of the an cients, whose manners he had thoroughly studied. His house, which stood on the Quirinal hill, was a plain old edifice ; though at the same time abundant ly convenient, and suitable to his equestrian rank : and here every thing was equally remote from mean ness and ostentation. Splendid occasionally in his hospitality, and entertaining, as he did, men of the rrost exalted condition, such as Cicero, Cesar, An tony, and Augustus ; still there was displayed more politeness than magnificence ; more neatness than show. It was his peculiar praise, that of all his household, there was none who was not born under his own roof ; and every person, to the meanest lac quey, was a proficient in the valuable arts of reading and writing. His feasts were never attended by bands of music, nor accompanied by any sumptuous exhibi tions, such as were agreeable to the gross taste of most of his cotemporaries. The only vocal entertainment allowed by him on these occasions was reading, which wss performed by persons trained for the purpose ; and this rational amusement communicated the most lively pleasure to the guests, who, he took care, were always of the same taste with himself. What must have been the elegance of the remarks, and the in terest of the whole amusement, when the company consisted of Atticus, Cicero, Cwsar, the poet Calli dius, Sallust, Hortensius, Cornelius Nepos, and simi lar men of letters ! In conversation, Atticus was so fascinating, that young men preferred his company to that of their own equals : but in his gayest moments, he had such a regard for decorum, that when even in jest, he had an air of dignity and elevation ; so that it was uncer tain whether he was more beloved or respected by his friends. Enviable talent ! which could thus temper the suavity of the companion with the dignity of the in structor; which could insensibly charm the levity of youth into the chastened majesty of philosophy! In his attachment to his friends,' Atticus possessed the utmost steadiness, and, unlike many a pretended patron, when he once made a promise, he considered the whole business as his own till he performed it.
His economical style of living enabled him to indulge the generous dispositions of his heart to a much greater extent than most could afford, who even sur passed him in wealth. Money was not his object, but the luxury of bestowing it well; and this he often did in the noblest manner. When Brutus was in the plenitude of his power, Atticus refused to support him ; but his fortunes were no sooner broken, than he relieved his private necessity by a princely .dona To Cicero, when strict of his possessions, and driven into exile, his faithful friend sent a sum of money in his distress, amounting to R2000 sterlingt Of his filial and fraternal affection, we may judge, from the funeral oration pronounced by him, at the age of 63, over his mother, whom he buried in her 90th year. He there declared, that he never in his life had occasion to be reconciled to his mother, nor had ever any quarrel with his sister, who was then much of his own age. Mr Bayle is pleased to be witty on this declaration, regretting that the orator said nothing about his wife Pilia, whom he therefore suspects been on bad terms with her hus , band. But Mr Bayle ought to recollect that he had not then been long married, whereas he had all his life maintained a close intercourse with those to whom he paid so elegant a compliment.
Atticus made a considerable figure in his own time as a writer. He kept up an epistolary correspon dence with the most eminent characters of that period. Of his correspondence with Cicero, we have a lasting monument in the letters which he received from that orator. He wrote a book of historical antiquities, into which he introduced genealogical tables of the principal families in Rome. He also composed, in Greek, an account of the consulship of Cicero, with which the latter declared himself to be well pleased, only that the style appeared somewhat unpolished and unadorned. Nor did Atticus altogether neglect poetry, which lie cultivated principally for the ele gant taste which that study promotes. His chief effort in this way consisted in describing, under their pictures, the most remarkable actions of distinguished men, concerning whom he is said to have comprised an amazing quantity of information in the compass of four or five verses.