Varro in Roman Biography

Varro, [Fr. Varron,] (Marcus Terentius,) a celebrated Latin author, styled " the most learned of the Romans," was born in 116 B.C., probably in Rome. He was a pupil of L. MYnm Stilo and of Antiochus of Ascalon, an Academic philosopher. He became an intimate friend of Cicero. About the year 67 B.C. he had a high command under Pompey in the war against the pirates. He fought for the senate against Caesar in the civil war which began in 49 B.C. Soon after the battle of Pharsalia, he retired from public life and devoted himself to literary pursuits. He was profoundly versed in nearly every department of literature, and. wrote a great number of works on various subjects. (lis capital work was " Antiquitatum Libri," consisting of twenty-five books on Human Antiquities and sixteen books on Divine Antiquities, which is not extant. Saint Augustine derived from this book materials for his work " De Civitate Dei." Nearly all of Varro's works are lost, except a part of his treatise on the Latin language, (" De Lingua Latina,") and his excellent work on agriculture, " De Re Rustica Libri tres,") which is preserved entire. In 43 B.C. he was proscribed by Mark Antony ; but he escaped death by concealment, and survived till 28 or 27 B.C. See E. Berwick, " Life of Pollio, Varro, and C. Gallus," 1815; Pafr, " De Varrone," 183s ; G. Boissiek, " Essai sur la Vie et lei Ouvrages de Varron," 1861; Orbu.i, " Ononiasticon Tullianum ;'* F'AnRicms, "Bibliotheca Latina;" " Nouvelle Biographic Generate