lutely, and scire nefas is parenthetical. In reference to the sentiment, compare O. iii., 29, 29. - -2. Nec. See Z. § 529, 535.- 3. Numeros. The calculations of the Babylonian astrologers on their tables of nativity. So Cic. de Div. 1, 19: Contemnamus etiam Babylonios et eos qui e Caucaso coeli signa servantes numeris stellarum cursus et motus persequuntur. 6. Vinum liques. The wine was clarified by straining it through a filter-bag of linen, saccus, or by means of the colum, a kind of metal sieve.-See Becker's Gallus, Exc. 4, to Scene 9; and Dict. Antiqq., Colum. ODE XII. In this noble ode, the poet celebrates the praises of Augustus, by associating him with gods and heroes, and distinguished Romans of earlier days. The ode was probably written A. U. c. 730, the year before the death of the young Marcellus, to whom allusion is intended in line 46, where see the note. 1. The first three stanzas form the introduction; this line seems to be an imitation of Pindar, Olymp. 2, 1 : τίνα θεὸν τίν' ἥρωα δ ̓ ἄνδρα. 2. Celebrare. See n. O. i., 2, 8. 3. Jocosa imago. Sportive echo. The whole expression is imago vocis, which Virgil has in Georg. 4, 50: Vocisque offensa resultat imago. Comp. O. i., 20, 6–8.· 5. In this and the next line, the poet refers to the three celebrated homes of ancient song: Mt. Helicon in Boeotia, Pindus in Thessaly; and Haemus in Thrace, the most ancient of all, famed for the storied deeds of Orpheus, Linus, and Musaeus. -7. Unde. Referring to Haemus. 9. Arte materna. From the Muse Calliope. 13. In the next five stanzas the poet sings the praises of gods and heroes. He begins with Jupiter. So Virgil, Ecl. 3, 60: "Ab Jove principium Musae: Jovis omnia plena." -14. Laudibus. Abl. governed by prius; though the construction differs from the common construction of the abl. with the comp., inasmuch as we have here the abl. instead of the acc. of the object with quam, while it is ordinarily instead of the acc. of the subject with quam. See Z. 484; and comp. above, O. i., 8, 9. -15. Mandam; i. e. coelum, the heavens. The three, mare, terra, and mundus, thus compre16. Horis. Seasons. So Ars. P. 1. 302. - 17. Unde is also used in reference to a person, below, O. ii., 12, 7; where Dillenb. refers to other passages: O. i., 28, 28; iii., 11, 38; Sat. i., 2, 58 and 78; i., 6, 12; ii., 6, 21. This use of unde also occurs in prose. Comp. Livy, 1, 8 and 49; 36, 11.-See Hand's Tursell. 3, p. 364. hending all nature. Unde; i. e. ex quo. 19. Proximos. The poet's conception is, that Jupiter is the Supreme Being, and so immeasurably superior to all other beings, that none may rank second to him; next in honor, though at a distant interval, is Minerva. The meaning of proximus is illustrated in Virgil 5, 320: Proximus huic, longo sed proximus intervallo. -27. Comp. Martial, xii., 8, 1: Roma, Cui par est nihil et nihil secundum.· 21. Procliis audax. Comp. O. ii., 19, 21. - 25. Aleiden. Hercules, in Mythology the grandson of Alcaeus. Pueros Ledae. Castor and Pollux. 26. Pugnis. From pugnus. Comp. Sat. ii., 1, 26.Alba. See notes O. i., 4, 4; i., 7, 15; and comp. i., 3, 2. The poet, in this and the following lines, means to describe the appearance of this constellation as the precursor of fair weather. - -31. Ponto. Dative; the prose construction would be in pontum. So Virgil, Georg. 1, 401, campo recumbunt. — 33. In this and the three following stanzas the poet mentions the names of Romans of earlier times, distinguished as kings or generals, or men of great moral worth. Romulum-Pompili. Comp. Livy, 1, 21,-duo reges—alius alia via, ille bello, hic pace, civitatem auxerunt. 34. Superbos Tarquini fasces. The epithet superbos necessarily limits the allusion to the second Tarquin, as we cannot suppose, that, if Horace had intended Tarquinius Priscus, he would have selected the very epithet by which the younger Tarquin was always designated in Roman history. The expression is equivalent to imperium Tarquinii Superbi. Notwithstanding the odious character of this prince, his reign, brilliant alike in victories abroad, and in the great public works with which he adorned the city, forms an epoch in the early Roman annals; and Horace might therefore well mention his name in connection with Romulus, who founded the state, and Numa, who gave it laws and peaceful institutions. Dillenb. aptly quotes Cic. Phil. 3, 4: Quasi vero ille rem Romanam, a Romulo primum conditam, a Numa Pompilio legibus institutisque temperatam non omnium maxime auxerit et amplificaverit, qui, ut Cato libertate, ita ipse regno dignissimus fuit. See, on this passage and the whole ode, Buttmann, Mythologus, vol. 1. 35. Catonis nobile letum. Having mentioned the illustrious names of the kingly period, the poet turns with admiration to that of Cato. It is the Cato, commonly called Uticensis, who, despairing of the republic, and determined not to survive its fall, put an end to his life at Utica, when that place was compelled to surrender to Caesar. Mistaken and wrong as he was in this last act of his life, and in the principles which prompted it, he yet deserves admiration for his purity of character, and his manly support of what he believed to be just and right. In the party, to which he clung to the last, no one was so upright and honest as Cato of Utica.-It is a circumstance honorable alike to the poet and to his sovereign, that praise is here, in such a connection, accorded to this hero of the last days of the republic. His name is mentioned again, and with like enthusiasm, in O. ii., 1, 24. And Augustus, now that the new order of things was firmly established, could sympathize in this tribute of respect to a man, who had won the good opinion of his opponents, of whom Caesar himself had uttered the memorable words, "Cato, I envy thee thy death.". -37. Regulam. See O. 3, 5, where Horace has finely exhibited the patriotism of Regulus. Seaurus. M. Aemilius Scaurus was consul in the year 638, and was distinguished also as a censor. He built the Aemilian road. His son built the Aemilian theatre. Animae. See Z. § 437. — 38. Paullum. L. Aemilius Paullus, compelled by his colleague Terentius Varro to give battle to the Carthaginians at Cannae. Livy, in 22, 49, has recorded his fate, in` preferring to die on the field, rather than flee. -40. Fabricium. C. Fabricius Luscinus, the conqueror of the Samnites, B. C. 278.- -41. Curiam. M. Curius Dentatus, the conqueror of Pyrrhus. Comp. Cic. de Senect. c. 16. Incomptis. In allusion to the rude simplicity of the early Roman manners. -42. Camillum. M. Furius Camillus, who delivered Rome from the Gauls, B. C. 390. See Livy, 5, 46.- -45. Crescit-aevo. Grows, like a tree, in the imperceptible lapse of time. The direct allusion is to M. Claudius Marcellus, celebrated in the second Punic war, as the opponent of Hannibal, and the conqueror of Syracuse; but the poet probably intends, at the same time, a complimentary allusion to the young Marcellus, the son of Octavia, and the nephew of Augustus; whose early death Virgil lamented in those beautiful lines in the Aeneid, 5, 833, seqq., Tu Marcellus eris, etc. 47. Julium sidus. The whole Julian family, though the principal allusion is undoubtedly to Julius Caesar, and to the star or the comet which was said to have been visible for seven nights after his death. See Suetonius, Jul. 88; and comp. .Virg. Bucol. 9, 47.- -49. Having thus skilfully prepared the way, the poet comes now to Augustus, whom, in this and the last two stanzas, he celebrates in lofty praise, as the vicegerent of Jupiter on earth. 54. Justo triumpho. For what was necessary to a legitimate triumph, see Dict. Antiqq. p. 1016. 55. Orae. Dat. depending upon subjectos. 56. Seras. The Seres lived in Serica, which is supposed to have been a part of what is now the Empire of China. ODE XIII. The poet contrasts the misery of jealousy, with the happiness secured by constancy in love. 4. Difficili bile. Sullenness." As the liver was held to be the seat of all violent passions, anger was expressed by splendida bilis, or vitrea, Persius, 3, 8; melancholy, by atra bilis.-Osborne. -6. Manent. This - is the true reading, by the consent of all the MSS., and Orelli, Dillenb., and most other editors retain it. On the use of the plural with necnec, see Z. 374. · - 10. Turparant humeros. The rage of Telephus in his 'lovers' quarrels" seems to have been very striking. Orelli reminds us of the more passionate nature of people living in a southern clime. Comp. O. i., 17, 25. — - 16. Quinta parte. Orelli adopts the more learned explanation of this expression, which is this: “ quinta, id est, absolutissima. Transfert ad amantium oscula τό πέμπτον ὄν, τὴν ñéμñτŋv ovoíav Pythagoraeorum, qui est aether” (Boeckh Philolaus, p. 161). The quintessencé. · -20. Suprema die. The more common construction would be citius quam suprema die. ODE XIV. Quintilian (in Inst. viii., 6, 44) cites this ode, as an illustration of the Allegory; and it is a fine instance of that species of composition. Horace refers to a period, at which the Roman state, after being tossed and well-nigh wrecked by perpetual storms, is reaching at length a peaceful harbor, though still exposed to peril. Tate supposes, and, we think, correctly, that the poet has in mind that critical period, B. c. 29, when Octavianus consulted Agrippa and Maecenas, whether he should retain or resign the sovereignty. Horace agreed with Maecenas, that, in the event of Octavianus withdrawing to private life, the state would be thrown into new commotions; and that in his sovereignty alone lay the sources of permanent peace and order.-See Schmitz's Hist. Rome, chap. xl. 1. Novi fluctus. For the explanation of these words, see the introduction. 2. Occupa. Occupare means here to gain the harbor. The ship is just in sight of the harbor; the state is just entering upon the tranquil administration of Augustus.· 3. Vides. The verb has in it the general notion of perceive. -6. Gemant. Subj., as well as possint below, because dependent upon nonne vides. -7. Carinae. Horace uses the plural, though but one ship is referred to. It is a poetical 10. Di. Images of tutelar deities, which were placed on an altar at the stern of the vessel. -11. Pontica pinus. Pontus abounded in those trees, which furnished the best ship-timber. Hence, in the next line silvae nobilis, for nobilis belongs to silvae, not filia. 15. Tu usage. -cave. I give here the punctuation of Dillenburger. He considers the words an illustration of the poetic construction, by which a noun is placed between two verbs, to both of which it belongs; as if it were nisi ventis ludibrium debes, cave ludibrium. But we may translate the whole beware lest you become the sport of the winds. 17. In the words sollicitum taedium the poet expresses the irksome solicitude which he had felt concerning the course of public affairs in the civil wars, when he himself had been attached to the unsuccessful party of Brutus and Cassius. This feeling had now given way to one of warm affection for his country under the rule of Octavianus (desiderium), though he yet felt no light anxiety (non levis cura) lest the civil commotions might be renewed. 20. Cyclades. So called from κúкλos; a cluster of islands in the Aegean. The epithet nitentes, from the marble with which they abounded. In O. iii., 28, 14, they are called fulgentes. ODE XV. In this ode, Horace, perhaps in imitation of Proteus's prophetic words to Menclaus, in Homer, Od. 4, 360 seqq., represents the god Nereus predicting to Paris the calamities in store for himself and his country, as a retribution for his flagrant violation of the laws of hospitality, in the seduction of Helen. Viewed in this light, the ode teaches an impressive lesson of the consequences of a single guilty act. The sentiment which it illustrates, Dillenburger aptly compares with the words of Schiller, Das ist der Fluch der bösen That, Dass sie fortzeugend Böses muss gebären. 2. 1. Pastor. Paris; who had led a shepherd's life on Mt. Ida. Perfidus hospitam. These words, thus purposely placed together, fix the attention upon the aggravated nature of Paris's offence, the source of all the calamities of Troy. Compare the passage, O. iif., 3, 26. ————— 4. Caneret. Oracles and prophecies were ordinarily uttered in verse. Compare Sat. ii., 5, 58; Epode 13, 11. 5. Mala avi. Avi by metonymy for omine or auspiciis. With ill omen. Compare O. iii., 3, 61; Epod. 10, 1. 6. Multo milite. With many a soldier. - Conjurata. So Virgil represents Dido, in allusion to the union of the Greeks against Troy, thus speaking (Aen. 4, 425): Non ego cum Danais Trojanam exscindere gentem 9. Heu heu, etc. He sees with prophetic eye, and vividly portrays the sad picture of the ruin of Troy. In respect to the picture-like character of the passage, compare O. ii., 1, 17 seqq. -10. Aegida. The aegis, alyls, literally, a goat-skin, was in the ancient mythology, the hide |