Those who have paid attention to the manner in which ancient books have been transmitted to modern times before the invention of printing, and who are familiar with the use of records and of other medieval manuscripts or transcripts, well know how full of abbreviations they are, and how difficult it often is for the editor to fill up these abbreviations, if he does not happen to know the word intended. The name of specus for the conduit of an aqueduct was essentially a technical word. The first transcribers of the text of Frontinus were not Romans, and did not know the term: hence they filled up the abbreviation spē, or perhaps originally spc̄, with spem or spei, instead of specum or specûs. The same thing may have occurred in the text of Lampridius (as mentioned in a note on a preceding page).
The Abbot of the monastery on Monte Cassino (now a public school and public library) has kindly given me tracings of all the passages in that manuscript in which this abbreviation occurs, and I have had them reproduced by photography and phototype on the page annexed. Opposite to this the same passages are given in the Italic characters, and a few words that are necessary to complete the sense in Roman characters. This is followed by an English translation of these passages, and by some extracts from Livy and other authors in explanation.
FACSIMILE FROM THE MANUSCRIPT AT MONTE CASSINO[50].
FRONTINUS DE AQUÆDUCTIBUS.
EXTRACTS REFERRING TO THE ABBREVIATION SPE̅S̅ FOR SPECUS.
I.
iungitur ei ad s .. em ueterem[51] in confinio ortorum torquatianorum
et ... novum ramus Augustae, hac tres ... ad Viminalem usque