For the first time Ennius succeeded in moulding the Latin language to the movement of the Greek hexameter. In spite of imperfections and roughness, his _Annals_ remained the foremost and representative Roman poem till Vergil wrote the _Aeneid_. Lucretius, whom he influenced, and to whom Vergil owes so much, says of him: _Ennius ut noster cecinit, qui primus amoeno Detulit ex Helicone perenni fronde coronam, Per gentes Italas honinum quae clara clueret;_ ‘As sang our Ennius, the first who brought down from pleasant Helicon a chaplet of unfading leaf, the fame of which should ring out clear through the nations of Italy.’ And later, Quintilian, X. i. 88: ‘Ennium sicut sacros vetustate lucos adoremus, in quibus grandia et antiqua robora iam non tantam habent speciem quantam religionem: Let us venerate Ennius like the groves, sacred from their antiquity, in which the great and ancient oak-trees are invested, not so much with beauty, as with sacred associations.’ --Sellar. FLAVIUS EUTROPIUS, fl. 375 A.D. 1. Life. [Sidenote: EUTROPIUS.] Very little is known of his life. He is said to have held the office of a secretary under Contanstine the Great (_ob._ 337 A.D.), and to have served under the Emperor Julian in his ill-fated expedition against the Persians, 363 A.D. 2. Works. His only extant work is his +Breviarium Historiae Romanae.+--A brief compendium of Roman History in ten books from the foundation of the city to the accession of Valens, 364 A.D., to whom it is inscribed. 3. Style. His work is a compilation made from the best authorities, with good judgment and impartiality, and in a simple style. Its brevity and practical arrangement made it very popular. FLORUS, circ. 120 (or 140?) A.D. (temp. Hadrian). 1. Life. [Sidenote: FLORUS.] L. Julius (or Annaeus) Florus lived at Rome in the time of Trajan or Hadrian. Little else is known of his life. 2. Works. An Epitome of the Wars of Livy, in two Books:-- Book I. treats of the good time of Rome, 753-133 B.C. (the Gracchi). „ II. treats of the decline of Rome, 133-29 B.C. (Temple of Janus closed). 3. Style. A pretentious and smartly written work abounding in mistakes, contradictions, and misrepresentations of historical truth. It was, however, popular in the Middle Ages on account of its brevity and its rhetorical style. Florus is useful in giving us a short account of events in periods where we have no books of Livy to guide us. S. JULIUS FRONTINUS, circ. 41-103 A.D. 1. Life. [Sidenote: FRONTINUS.]