177. Phœnix.
The Phœnix lives a thousand years, "a secular bird of ages:" and there is never more than one at a time in the world. Yet Plutarch very gravely informs us, that the brain of the phoenix is a pleasant bit, but apt to occasion the head-ache. By the bye, there are few styles that are not fit for something. I have often wished to see Claudian's splendid Poem on the Phœnix translated into English verse in the elaborate rhyme and gorgeous diction of Darwin. Indeed, Claudian throughout would translate better than any of the ancients.