Catullus
CAIUS VALERIUS (kat-ul'us), a Roman lyric poet, born in Verona, about 90 в. c. He was the friend of Cicero, of Plancus, Cinna, and Cornelius Nepos; to the last he dedicated the collection of his poems. Almost all the known details of his life are derived by inference from his works, and relate to such matters as his passion for Lesbia, his journey to Bithynia, and voyage home in his yacht, his pleasant villa on Lake Benacus, etc. He was the first of the Romans who successfully caught the Greek lyric spirit, and gave to Roman literature its most genuine songs. He died about 54 в. c.