Augustus. The Muse is asked whom she will praise, - Jove and his children, or some one of the worthies of Rome, of whom many are mentioned, beginning with Romulus and ending with Augustus, of whom it is declared that he is under the especial care of Jove, and that he holds from him the sceptre of the world. These persons are mentioned without reference to chronological order, and it does not appear why some were chosen rather than others of more or equal note who are omitted. ARGUMENT. - Whom wilt thou sing among gods or men, Clio ? Whose name shall the echoes of Pindus or Helicon repeat, or of Hæmus, whose woods followed the sweet music of Orpheus? Whom, before the Almighty Father, who knows no equal or second ? After him cometh Pallas, and then brave Liber, and the huntress Diana, and Phœbus the archer, and Hercules, and Leda's sons, the horseman and the fighter, before whose star the tempests fly. Then shall it be Romulus, or the peaceful Numa, or proud Tarquin, or Cato, who nobly died? Regulus, and the Scauri, and Paulus, who gave up his great soul to the Carthaginan, gratefully I will sing, and Fabricius and Curius and Camillus, all trained for war in poverty's school. The fame of Marcellus is growing up insensibly, like a tree, and the star of Julius is brighter than all stars. To thee, great Father, is given the care of Cæsar; share with him thy kingdom. Putting Parthians to flight, and subduing the nations of the East, he shall rule the world, as thy vicegerent, with a righteous sway, while thou dost shake Olympus, and hurlest thy bolts on the haunts of impiety. 1. Quem virum] This opening is taken from the beginning of the second Olympic Ode of Pindar: ἀναξιφόρμιγγες ὕμνοι τίνα θεόν, τίν ̓ ἥρωα, τίνα δ ̓ ἄνδρα κελαδήσομεν ; 2. sumis celebrare,] See C. i. 1. 8, n. Horace invokes the Muses without much discrimination; but Clio is not improperly invoked here, as the Muse of history, to which the names of the worthies recounted belong. Calliope, the Epic Muse, is invoked C. iii. 4. 2; Melpomene, the tragic, is asked for a dirge, i. 24. 3, and is invoked by Horace as his patroness in iv. 3; Euterpe and Polymnia, the proper lyric Muses, occur i. 1. 33. 'Imago' is used absolutely for the echo (for which the Romans had no corresponding term) by Cicero, Tusc. iii. 2: "ea (laus bonorum) virtuti resonat tanquam imago. Virgil gives the full expression, Georg. iv. 50: "Vocisque offensa resultat imago." See C. i. 20. 8. Our verse-writers are fond of Horace's epithet, 'sportive echo.' 5. Heliconis oris] Helico was a range of mountains in Bœotia, and Pindus between Thessaly and Epirus. Both were celebrated as the abodes of the Muses. Hæmus was a range on the north of Thrace, and Orpheus was a Thracian. See A. P. 391, 405, n. 9. Arte materna] Orpheus was the son of the Muse Calliope. 15, 16. Qui mare ac terras] Virgil addresses Jove in the same way: " O qui res hominumque deumque Aeternis regis imperiis et fulmine terres." - Aen. i. 230. variisque mundum - horis] 'Mundum' here signifies 'the sky,' as in Georg. i. 240, and 'horis' has its Greek signification, - 'seasons.' 17. Unde nil majus] 'Unde' occurs several times in Horace as referring to persons. See, among other places, Cicero de Senect. 4, fin., "fore unde discerem neminem." 19. Proximos] This, signifying the next in order without reference to distance, does not contradict what goes before. 'Secundum' means close proximity. Pallas is said to hold the next place to Jupiter, not absolutely, but among those 'qui generantur ipso,' and only these are mentioned. 21. Proeliis audax] Horace confounds the Latin divinity Liber with the Greek Dionysus or Bacchus, whose Indian wars and contests with the giants (ii. 19. 21) are here alluded to. 26. Hunc equis, -) S. ii. 1. 26. 29. Defluit saxis agitatus humor,] the rocks flow back to their bed. The waters that in their fury covered See C. i. 3. 2, n. 33. Romulum post hos, etc.] The order is, 'dubito utrum prius post hos memorem Romulum, an quietum Pompili regnum,' etc. 34. superbos Tarquini fusces] Tarquinius Priscus is probably referred to, and 'superbos' must in that case be taken in a good sense. 35. Catonis] M. Cato, surnamed Uticensis from the fortress of Utica in Africa, where he died. He put himself to death, rather than fall into the hands of Julius Cæsar, в. с. 46. 37. Scauros] The plural is used for the singular (see S. i. 7. 8, n.), and M. Æmilius Scaurus is meant, who was consul B. c. 115. The story of M. Atilius Regulus, who as consul commanded the Roman army in the first Punic war, and was taken by the Carthaginians, is told in C. iii. 5. L. Æmilius Paullus commanded with Varro, his colleague in the consulship, at the battle of Cannæ, when the Romans were defeated by Hannibal, and Paullus lost his life by refusing to fly when he might have done so. C. Fabricius Luscinus was consul, and commanded in the war with Pyrrhus, в. с. 278, three years after which M. Curius Dentatus was consul and commander in the same war. Both of these consuls were celebrated for the simplicity of their habits, and for rejecting the bribes of the Samnites, in respect to which a notable saying of Curius is related by Cicero (De Senect. c. 16). The older Romans wore their hair and beards long. These heroes are represented as negligent of their appearance. L. Furius Camillus is he who was said to have forced the Gauls to raise the siege of the Capitol, в. с. 390. 43, 44 Saeva paupertas] 'Saevus' does not necessarily bear a bad sense, nor is it so used in C. iii. 16. 16. 'Apto cum lare' means 'with a suitable house,' - a house of a size proportionate to the small ancestral farm. 45. occulto-aero] 'By an imperceptible growth,' as Ovid, Met. x. 519 : "Labitur occulte fallitque volatilas aetas." Marcellus was he who took Syracuse in the second Punic war, в. с. 212, and his name stands for all his descendants, and particularly the young Marcellus, who married Julia, the daughter of Augustus, в. с. 25, and died in less than two years after. This allusion makes it probable he was alive when the Ode was written. The star of Julius Cæsar, and the lesser lights of that family, are meant by what follows. By 'Julium sidus' is meant Cæsar himself, at whose death a comet is reported to have appeared, which was supposed to be his spirit translated to the skies. (See Ovid, Met. xv. sub fin.) 53. Ille, seu Parthos] See C. 2. 21, n. The Romans had hopes that Augustus would conquer the Parthians, and redeem the disgrace they had suffered from them, and this is written in anticipation of that event. Justo triumpho' is a complete triumph. (See Cic. de Am. c. 20; ad Fam. xv. 6, with Long's notes.) 56. Seras et Indos,] See notes on C. iii. 29. 27; iv. 15. 23. ODE XΙΙΙ. THIS Ode expresses a lover's jealousy, being addressed to his mistress, Lydia, who is supposed to be coquetting with a youth named Telephus. ARGUMENT. - Lydia, while thou art praising Telephus's neck, Telephus's arms, oh! my heart is ready to burst. My mind tosses about; my color comes and goes; and the tear stealing down my cheek tells of the slow fire that burns within. It galls me when his rough hands hurt thy shoulders, or his teeth leave their mark on thy lips: think not he will be constant who could hurt that nectared mouth. How happy they whom love binds fast, to the day of their death! 2. cerea Telephi] 'Cerea' means 'white as wax.' The Romans wore their necks and arms bare, the tunic being cut so as to expose the throat and upper part of the chest, and having no sleeves. 4. difficili bile 'Jealousy.' The Romans expressed anger by 'splendida' or 'vitrea bilis,' and melancholy by 'atra bilis' (μελαγχολία). 6. manet,] The lengthening of a short syllable in such positions is not uncommon. So C. ii. 13.16: "Caeca timet aliunde fata." 12. memorem] 'lasting'; which will long tell the tale of his violence. 13. Non, - Speres] This more emphatic negative is used not uncommonly in prohibitive sentences, instead of 'ne,' as "non - sileas," S. ii. 5. 91; "non ulceret," Ep. i. 18.72; "non sit qui tollere curet," A. P. 460. 16. Quinta parte sui nectaris imbuit.] Some of the Greek poets had notions about the relative sweetness of nectar and honey which Horace has here imitated, and "quinta parte sui nectaris" probably means honey. 18. irrupta] This word is not found elsewhere. 20. Suprema citius] This construction for 'citius quam suprema' only occurs once again in Horace, in "plus vice simplici" (C. iv. 14. 13). ODE XIV. DURING the troubles in Mitylene, his native city, Alcæus wrote an Ode, of which this seems to be a close imitation. It was written most probably during the civil wars, that is, between в. с. 41 and 30 (when Horace returned to Rome). The state is likened to a ship drifting out to sea with its rigging crippled, and in danger of destruction. ARGUMENT. - Thou art drifting again to sea, thou ship; oh! haste, and make for the harbor; oars lost, mast split, yards crippled, and rigging gone, how canst thou weather the storm? Thy sails are torn, thy gods are gone, and, noble hull though thou be, there is no strength in thy beauty. If thou be not fated to destruction, avoid the rocks, thou who wert but late my grief, and art now my anxious care. 6. sine funibus 'deprived of her rigging.' Some understand it to mean 'without girding ropes,' referring to St. Luke's description of their undergirding the ship in which St. Paul was being conveyed to Rome (Acts xxvii. 16). 10. Non di,] "Accipit et pictos puppis adunca deos" (Ov. Heroid. xvi 112). There was usually a niche in the stern of a ship where the image of the tutelary god was kept. 11, 12. Pontica pinus,] The best ship timber came from Pontus. 'Pinus' is in apposition with the subject of 'Jactes,' and 'nobilis' agrees with 'Silvae.' 15. nisi Debes ludibrium,] i. e. 'if thou be not fated to destruction.' 17. Nuper sollicitum] Taking the Ode as an address to the state, we can only understand Horace to mean, that while he was attached to Brutus, or before he had received pardon, he had no other feelings than fear for his own safety and disgust with the state of the country; but now, under Augustus, he watches its fate with the affection and anxiety of a friend. The order is, '(Tu) quae nuper eras mihi sollicitum taedium (et quae) Nunc (es) desiderium curaque non levis, Vites aequora Interfusa (inter) nitentes Cy cladas.' 19. nitentes] This is like 'fulgentes' (C. iii. 28. 14), shining, as cliffs will do in the sun. The Cyclades abound in white marble. ODE XV. THIS is probably an early composition of Horace, made up of materials from the Greek, and written merely to exercise his pen. ARGUMENT. - Paris is carrying off Helen, when Nereus causes a calm, and thus prophesies their fate: "With dark omen art thou carrying home her whom Greece hath sworn to recover. Alas for the sweating horse and rider, and the deaths thou art bringing upon Troy! Pallas prepareth her arms and her fury. Under Venus's shelter, comb thy locks and strike thy lyre, and hide thyself in thy chamber; but it shall not avail thee. Seest thou not Laertes's son, Nestor of Pylos, Teucer of Salamis, and Sthenelus the fighter and bold charioteer? Merion too, and the son of Tydeus, from whom thou shalt flee panting, as the stag fleeth from the wolf, - thou, who didst boast better things to thy fair one? Achilles's wrath may put off the evil day, but the fire of the Greek shall consume the homes of Troy. 2. Helenen] Horace uses the Greek inflections in his odes, and the Latin in his iambic verses, satires, and epistles (Bentley). This might be expected, especially when, as in this instance, the imitation of Greek writers is obvious. 5. Nereus] He is made to speak, because the sea-gods were endowed with the gift of prophecy. Mala avi' is like "alite lugubri," C. iii. 3. 61; "mala alite," Epod. x. 1. 7. Conjurata - rumpere] This is a legitimate prose construction. "Conjuravere patriam incendere" (Sal. Cat. 52. 24. See Liv. 22.38). 'Rumpere' governs 'regnum' as well as 'nuptias, though for its sense it ought only to belong to 'nuptias.' 11. aegida The 'aegis' was properly the skin of the goat Amalthea, the nurse of Zeus, which he used as a shield or as a breastplate (see C. iii. 4. 57), where it is worn, as here, by Pallas. The word is not confined in use to the original meaning, but is taken for a metal shield or breastplate worn by Zeus, Pallas, or Apollo. It had a Gorgon's head upon it. 13. Veneris praesidio] Sce Hom. Il. iii. 44, and on v. 16 see Il. iii. 380; vi. 321. Horace's description of Paris is drawn, not from Homer, who makes him brave, but from later writers who altered the Homeric characters. See Heyne, Exc. i. Aen. ii. See also Aen. iv. 215, sqq. 14. Pectes caesariem] Sce C. iv. 9. 13. 15. divides;] 'Dividere carmina' is perhaps to sing and play alternately 17. Chosii] Cnossus or Cnosus or Gnosus was the principal city of Crete. Sce C. iv. 9. 17, n. 19. Ajacem; (Il. ii. 527). The son of Oileus. Homer calls him ̓Οϊλῆος ταχὺς Αἴας 24. Teucer et] In this verse and in v. 36 Horace has introduced a trochee in the first foot, contrary to his own custom, but in accordance with the practice of the Greeks. 'Sciens pugnae' is Homer's πολέμου εὖ εἰδώς, and 'Tydides melior patre' is taken from Sthenelus's vaunt, Il. iv. 405 : ἡμεῖς τοι πατέρων μέγ ̓ ἀμείνονες εὐχόμεθ ̓ εἶναι. 31. Sublimi-an anhelitu] 'Panting heavily,' as the fleeing stag, with its head raised in the air. 32. tuae.] C. i. 25. 7. 33. diem For 'diem supremam.' In this form the expression is like the Hebrew, which we meet with frequently in the Scriptures: "Remember the children of Edom in the day of Jerusalem" (Ps. cxxxvii. 7), and "they that come after him shall be astonished at his day, as they that went before were affrighted” (Job xviii. 20). The word which expresses the wrath of Achilles is applied to his fleet. ODE XVI. HORACE appears to have written some severe verses against some woman or other, and this seems to be written in mock penitence for that offence. He represents the evils of anger, and begs her to destroy his verses and forgive him. ARGUMENT. - Lovely daughter of a lovely mother, destroy those abusive verses how thou wilt. Cybele, Apollo, Liber, agitate not their votaries' hearts as anger does, which is stopped neither by sword, nor by waves, nor by fire, nor by the falling of the skies themselves. When Prometheus was bidden to take a part from every animal to give to man, he implanted in our hearts the lion's fury. Wrath laid Thyestes low, and hath brought proud cities to the dust. Be appeased. In the sweet season of youth yo I was tempted by hot blood to write those rash verses. I would now lay aside all unkindness, if thou wilt but let me recall my libel, and give me back thy heart. 2. criminosis] 'abusive.' 5. Dindymene, Cybele, the mother of the gods, so called from Mount Dindymus, in Galatia, where she had a temple. Her priests were called Galli (from this locality) and Corybantes. Her rites were celebrated by these priests in a very mad fashion, as were those of Bacchus. 9. Noricus] The best steel for sword-blades came from Noricum, on the Danube. 13. Fertur Prometheus,] This story is not found elsewhere. 'Principi limo,' 'the prime clay,' corresponds to πρῶτον ἄρχον πηλόν in Soph. Frag. (432 Dind ), καὶ πρῶτον ἄρχον πηλὸν ὀργάζειν χεροῖν. It means the clay before the soul was put into it. 18. ultimae Stetere causae] Liv. vii. c. 1: "Ea ultima fuit causa cur bellum Tiburti populo indiceretur." The final or proximate cause: that which immediately leads to a thing. See Virg. Aen. vii. 553: "Stant causaç belli." 24. celeres] A. P. 251: "iambus pes citus." The quality of the measure is mentioned as some palliation, perhaps, of the severity of the verses. |