3. _Res_ is derived from possessing rightly (_recte_); _jus_ from possessing justly (_juste_).... What is wickedly possessed is not the owner’s. He possesses wickedly who uses his own wickedly or takes possession of another’s.... He who is captured by greed is possessed, not possessing. 4. _Bona_ belong to the honorable or noble, and they are called _bona_ so that they may not have a base use but men may use them for good things. 5. _Peculium_ belongs properly to minors or slaves. For _peculium_ is that which the father or master allows his son or slave to treat as his own.... ON TIMES[299] [299] In his “On Times,” Isidore is apparently condensing what he has written elsewhere. The first part of it, which gives an account of the divisions of time—the moment, hour, day, week, month, year, and so forth—is drawn from _De Natura Rerum_, which in turn was based on Suetonius, Solinus, Hyginus, of the heathen writers, and Ambrosius, Clement, and Augustine, of the Christian. (See p. 46.) In the second part, which consists of a brief chronology, Isidore condensed his _Chronicon_, which was drawn from Eusebius as translated and modified by Jerome, and supplemented by the later work of Prosper, Victor Tunnensis, and Joannis Biclarensis. The sources of the _Chronicon_ have been thoroughly discussed by H. Hertzberg, _Ueber die Chronicon des Isidors von Sevilla_ in _Forschungen zur Deutschen Geschichte_ (Göttingen, 1875), vol. xv. INTRODUCTION To the early and medieval Christian chronology was a subject of absorbing interest. For him the course of the world’s history was authoritatively laid down in the Biblical account, and looking back over it he thought he saw that it was passing by well-marked stages to an end that was to be as sharply defined as its beginning had been. It was inevitable that there should be an attempt to plot its progress and even to form some general notion as to its end. For this purpose the Greek chronology was accepted in its entirety and extended by a set of extravagant assumptions, acceptable to the uncritical minds of the time, back to the beginning of the world. By this means an authoritative chronological exposition of past time was secured, such as under wise interpretation would disclose more clearly the rate and manner in which God’s purpose was working itself out.[300] [300] At the same time chronology was incidentally made to show in a statistical way what a great priority Hebrew civilization had over its pagan rivals. _Cf._ pp. 79, 80. The chronology presented by Isidore traces the course of time along the line of the Roman emperors from Heraclius back to Julius Caesar, and then by way of the Ptolemaic dynasty to Alexander the Great. Here a transition is made to the Persian kings, who are followed back to Darius near the beginning of the fifth age. The four ages between the captivity of the Jews and the creation are marked by Biblical personages only.