The principal authors on the subject of climactericks, are PLATO, CICERO, MACROBIUS, AULUS GELLIUS, among the ancients; ARGOL, MAGIRUS, and SALMATIUS, among the moderns. ST. AUGUSTINE, ST. AMBROSE, BEDA, and BOETIUS, all countenance the opinion.

LUCKY AND UNLUCKY DAYS.

Astrologers have also brought under their inspection and controul the days of the year, which they have presumed to divide into lucky and unlucky days; calling even the sacred scriptures, and the common belief of Christians, in former ages, to their assistance for this purpose. They pretend that the 14th day of the first month was a blessed day among the Israelites, anthorised therein, as they pretend, by the several following passages out of Exodus, c. xii. v. 18, 40, 41, 42, 51. Leviticus, c. xxiii. v. 5. Numbers, c. xxviii. v. 16. 66 Four hundred and thirty years being expired of their dwelling in Egypt, even in the self same day departed they thence."

With regard to evil days and times, Astrologers refer to Amos, c. 5, v. 13, and c. vi. v. 3. Ecclesiasticus, c. ix. v. 12. Psalm, xxxvii. v. 19. Obadiah, c. xii. Jeremiah, c. xlvi. v. 21, and to Job cursing his birth-day, chap. iii. v. 1 to 11. In confirmation of which they also quote a calendar, extracted out of several ancient Roman catholic prayer books, written on vellum, before printing was invented, in which were inserted the unfortu

nate days of each month, as in the following

verses;

JANUARY.-Prima dies mensis, et septima truncat ensis.
FEBRUARY.- Quarta subit mortem, prosternit tertia fortem.
MARCH.-Primus mandentem, disrumpit quarta bibentem.
APRIL.-Denus et undenus est mortis vulnere plenus.
MAY.-Tertius occidit, et Septimus ora relidit.

JUNE.-Denus Pallescit, quindenus fœdera nescit.

JULY.-Ter denus mactat, Julii denus labefactat.
AUGUST.-Prima necat fortem, perditque secunda cohortem.
SEPTEMBER.-Tertia Septembris, et denus fert mala membris.
OCTOBER.-Tertius et denus, est sicut mors alienus.

NOVEMBER. Scorpius est quintus, et tertius est vita tinctus.
DECEMBER.-Septimus exanguis, virosus denus ut Anguis.

This poetry is a specimen of the rusticity and ignorance at least of the times; and is a convincing proof that Christianity had yet a very strong tincture of the Pagan superstitions attached to it, and which all the purity of the gospel itself, to this very day, has not been able entirely to obliterate.

That the notion of lucky and unlucky days owes its origin to paganism, may be proved from Roman history, where it is mentioned that that very day four years, the civil wars were begun by Pompey the father; Cæsar made an end of them with his son, Cneius Pompeius being then slain; and that the Romans accounted the 13th of February an unlucky day, because on that day they were overthrown by the Gauls at Allia; and the Fabii attacking the city of the Recii, were all slain with the exception of one man from the calendar of Ovid's "Fastorum," Aprilis erat mensis Græcis auspicatissimus; and from Horace, lib. 2, ode 13, cursing the tree that had nearly fallen upon it; ille nefasto posuit die.

The number of remarkable events that happened on some particular days have been the principal means of confirming both Pagans and Christians in their opinion on this subject. For example, Alexander the Great, who was born on the 6th of April, conquered Darius and died on the same day. The Emperor Bassianus Caracalla was born and died on a sixth day of April. Augustus was adopted on the 19th of August, began his Consulate, conquered the Triumviri, and died the same day.

The Christians have observed that the 24th of February was four times fortunate to Charles the Fifth. That Wednesday was a fortunate day to Pope Sixtus V. for on a Wednesday he was born, on that day made a Monk, on the same day made a General of his order, on that day created a Cardinal, on that day elected Pope, and also on that day inaugurated. That Thursday was a fatal day to Henry VIII. King of England, and his posterity, for he died on a Thursday; King Edward VI. on a Thursday; Queen Mary on a Thursday; and Queen Elizabeth on a Thursday. The French have observed that the feast of Pentecost had been lucky to Henry III. King of France, for on that day he was born, on that day elected king of Poland, and on that day he succeeded his brother Charles IX. on the throne of France.

GENETHLIACI.

(From yeven, origin, generation, nativity.)

These, so called in Astrology, are persons who erect Horoscopes; or pretend what shall befal a

man, by means of the stars which presided at his nativity *. The ancients called them Chaldai, and by the general name mathematici: accordingly the several civil and canon laws, which we find made against the mathematicians, only respect the Genethliaci, or Astrologers; who were expelled Rome by a formal decree of the senate, and yet found so much protection from the credulity of the people, that they remained unmolested. Hence an ancient author speaks of them as hominum genus, quod in civitate nostra sempe et vetabitur, et retinebitur.

GENETHLIACUM, (Genethliac poem,)

Is a composition in verse, on the birth of some prince, or other illustrious person; in which the poet promises him great honours, advantages, successes, victories, &c. by a kind of prophecy or prediction. Such, for instance, is the eclogue of Virgil to Pollio, beginning

Sicelides Musa, paulo majora Canamus.

There are also Genethliac speeches or orations, made to celebrate a person's birth day.

BARCLAY'S REFUTATION OF ASTROLOGY.

Astrological superstition, it is said, transcended from the Chaldeans, who transmitted it to the Egyptians, from whom the Greeks derived it, whence it passed to the Romans, who, doubtless,

* Antipater and Achina polus have shewn, that Genethliology should rather be founded on the time of the conception than on that of the birth.

were the first to disseminate it over Europe, though some will have it to be of Egyptian origin, and ascribe the invention to CHAM; but it is to the Arabs that we owe it. At Rome, the people were so infatuated with it, the Astrologers, or, as they are called, the mathematicians, maintained their ground in spite of all the edicts to expel them out of the city *.

The Bramins introduced and practised this art among the Indians, and thereby constituted themselves the arbiters of good and evil hours, which gives them vast authority, and in consequence of this supererogation, they are consulted as Oracles, and take good care they never sell their answers but at a good price.

The same superstition, as we have already shewn, has prevailed in more modern ages and nations. The French historians remark, that, in the time of Queen Catherine of Medicis, Astrology was in so great repute, that the most inconsiderable thing was not undertaken or done without consulting the stars. And in the reigns of king Henry III. and IV. of France, the predictions of Astrologers were the common theme of the court conversation.

This predominant humour in the French court was well rallied by Barclay in his Argenis, lib. ii, on account of an Astrologer who had undertaken to instruct king Henry in the event of a war then threatened by the faction of the Guises.

66

You maintain," says Barclay, "that the cir

* Astrologers and wise men of the present day, thanks to a statute or two in the civil code, limit their star-gazing faculties to the making of calendars or almanacks.