[106]
It is an old opinion, O judges, which can be proved from the most ancient records
and monuments of the Greeks, that the whole island of Sicily was consecrated to Ceres and Libera. Not only did all other nations think so but the
Sicilians themselves were so convinced of it, that it appeared a deeply rooted and
innate belief in their minds. For they believe that these goddesses were born in
these districts, and that corn was first discovered in this land, and that Libera
was carried off, the same goddess whom they call Proserpina, from a grove in the
territory of Enna, a place which, because
it is situated in the centre of the island, is called the navel of Sicily. And when Ceres wished to seek her and trace her out, she is said to have lit
her torches at those flames which burst out at the summit of Aetna, and carrying these torches before her, to
have wandered over the whole earth.
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M. Tullius Cicero. The Orations of Marcus Tullius Cicero, literally translated by C. D. Yonge. London. George Bell & Sons. 1903.
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