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Tke Manichces. Sect. I. 263
' supposing" llie straijoc tilings lie had lienrd of iiiiii to be
' true, he scuds for him as an nj)ost!e, hoping that by Iiiin
' he might save his son : Avheii he was come he pretended
* to undertake the cure of the king's son. But when the
* king saw that his son died in his liands, he shut him up in
* prison, intending to put him to death ; but he made his
' escape, and came into IMesopotamia. The king of Persia
' hearing that he was in those parts, sent after him, got him
* apprehended, and Hayed liim alive: after which his skin
' was filled with chaff and hung up at the gate of the city.
' This account is no forgery of ours ; it is collected out of
' the book of Archelaus, bishop of Caschar, a city in Meso-
* potamia, which we have met with and read : for Arclielaus
' himself says he had disputed with him in person; and he
' there relates the several particulars which I have written
' concerning" him.'
Thus I have given the history of Mani, and his principles,
in the words of this ancient writer, which will serve for a
text to be commented upon. Once I was somewhat desirous
to set before my readers in this place Augustine's article of
the Manichees in his book Of Heresies ; but it is too abstruse
and dogmatical ; therefore I thought this historical account
preferable. There is another reason which discouraged the
design of translating Augustine, and may be soon perceived
by those w ho look into him : but though 1 do not here, nor
any w here else, translate that article of Augustine entire, I
shall make good use of it, and frequently quote it.
In this passage of Socrates we see a proof of the truth of
Beausobre's observation, thati from the book called The Acts
of Archelaus, the ancient christian writers took the history
of Mani, and of the origin of Manichteism, which they have
given us. Cyril of Jerusalem, Epiphanius, Socrates, the
Greeks in general, have all drawn from this source; as is
acknowledged too by"^ Petavius and* Tillemont.
We have seen the account which Soci*ates gives of the
death of Mani, taken from the forementioned book : but
Socrates flourishes when he says that ' the king of Persia
' having heard of the strange things said to be done by Mani,
' and believing them to be true, sent for him as an apostle.'
1 Beaus. Hist, de Manich. p. 6. T. i.
' Ex hac Archelai
relatione cpeteri deinceps hauserunt omnes, qui hteretici istiiis historian; et
dogmata scriptis tradiderunt. Petav. Aaimadv. ad Epiph. p. 289.
* Les petites differences, qui se rccontrent entr' eux, (savoir Epiphane,
Cyrille, Socrate,) n'empechent pas cju' on ne voye qu' ils ont tous puise dans
la meme source. TiUem. Mem. Ec. T. 4. p. 2. Art. 12. p. 794.