INTRODUCTORY NOTICE. INUCIUS FELIX is said by Jerome1 to have been an advocateat Rome priorto hisconversion to Christianity.Very littleelseis known, how ever,of hishistory; and of his writingsnothing withany certainty,exceptthe followingdialogue; although Jerome speaksof another tractas having,probablywithout reason,been ascribedto him. The Octavius,which is here translated,is a supposed argument between the heathen Caeciliusand the Christian Octavius— the writerbeing requestedto arbitratebetween thedisputants.The dateof itscompositionisstilla matter of keen dispute. The settlementof the point hinges upon theanswer to the question— Whether, in the numerous pas sages which are strikinglysimilar,occurringin the Apolo- geticusand the Octavius,Tertullianborrowed from Minucius, or Minucius borrowed from Tertullian? If Minucius bor rowed from Tertullian,he must have flourishedin the com mencement of the third century,as the Apologeticuswas written about the year 198 a.d. If, on the other hand, Tertullianborrowed from Minucius,the Octaviuswas written probably about the year 166, and Minucius flourishedin the reign of Marcus Aurelius. The laterdate was the one adopted by earliercritics,and the reasons for it are well given by Mr. Holden in his introduction.The earlierdate was suggested by Rosler,maintained by Niebuhr, and ela boratelydefended by Muralto. An exhaustiveexhibitionof arguments in favour of the earlierdate has been given by Adolf Ebert in his paper,Tertullians Verhaltnisszu Minu ciusFelix,Leipzig 1868. 1De VirisIllustribus,c.58. CYP.— tOL. II. 2 F