OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE.

dialogues of Plato are a dramatic picture of thelife and death of a sage; and as often as he de-scends from the clouds, his moral system incul-cates the love of truth, of our country, and ofmankind. The precept and example of So-crates recommended a modest doubt and liberalinquiry: and if the Platonists , with blind devo-tion, adored the visions and errors of their divinemaster, their enthusiasm might correct the drydogmatic method of the Peripatetic school. Soequal, yet so opposite, are the merits of Plato and Aristotle , that they may be balanced in end-less controversy; but some spark of freedommay be produced by the collision of adverse ser-vitude. The modern Greeks were divided be-tween the two sects: with more fury than skillthey fought under the banner of their leaders;and the field of battle was removed in their flightfrom Constantinople to Rome . But this philo-sophical debate soon degenerated into an angryand personal quarrel of grammarians; and Bes-sarion, though an advocate for Plato , protectedthe national honour, by interposing the adviceand authority of a mediator. In the gardens ofthe Medici, the academical doctrine was enjoyedby the polite and learned: but their philosophicsociety was quickly dissolved ; and if the writ-ings of the Attic sage were perused in the closet,the more powerful Stagyrite continued to reignthe oracle of the church and school/

I have fairly represented the literary merits of

r The state of the Platonic philosophy in Italy is illustrated byBoivin (Mem. de l’Acad. des Inscriptions, tom. ii, p. 715-729) andTiraboschi (tom. vi, p. j p. 259-268).

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CHAP.

I.XVI.