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Arcano qui facra ferens nutantia loro
Sudavit clypeis ancilibus. O pater urbis !
Unde nefas tantum Latiis paftoribus? unde
Hæc tetigit, Gradive, tuos urtica nepotes?
Traditur ecce viro clarus genere, atque opibus vir:
Nec galeam quaffas, nec terram cufpide pulfas,
Nec quereris patri !-Vade ergo, & cede feveri

125

130

125. Who carrying facred things.] This alludes to the facred images carried in the proceffions of the Salii, which waved or nodded with the motion of those who carried them, or, perhaps, fo contrived, as to be made to nod, as they were carried along, like the image of Venus when carried in pomp at the Circenfian games, mentioned by Ov. Amor. Eleg. Lib. iii. Eleg. ii. Annuit & motu figna fecunda dedit.

A fecret rein.] A thong, or leather strap, fecretly contrived, fo as, by pulling it, to make the image nod its head: to the no fmall comfort of the vulgar, who thought this a propitious fign, as giving affent to their petitions. See the laft

note.

126. Sweated with Mars's fhields.] The ancilia were so called from ancifus, cut or pared round.

In the days of Numa Pompilius, the fucceffor of Romulus, a round fhield was faid to fall from heaven: this was called ancile, from its round form; and, at the fame time, a voice faid, that the city would be of all the most powerful, while that "ancile was preferved in it." Numa, therefore, to prevent its being stolen, caufed eleven fhields to be made fo like it, as not to be difcerned which was the true one. He then inftituted the twelve Salii, or priests of Mars, who were to carry thefe twelve fhields through the city, with the images, and other infignia of Mars (the fuppofed father of Romulus the founder of Rome) and while these priests went in proceffion, they fang and danced till they were all over in a fweat. Hence these priests of Mars were called Salii, a faliendo.

The poet gives us to understand, that Gracchus had been one of these Salii, but had left them, and had funk into the effeminacies and debaucheries above mentioned.

--O father of the city!] Mars, the fuppofed father of Romulus, the founder of Rome, and therefore called pater urbis. See Hor. Lib. i. Od. ii. 1. 35-40.

127. Latian Shepherds?] Italy was called Latium, from lateo, to lie hid: Saturn being faid to have hidden himself there, when he fled from his fon Jupiter. See Virg. Æn. viii. 319-23. Romulus was fuppofed to have been a fhepherd, as

Who carrying facred things nodding with a rein,

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Sweated with Mars's fhields. O father of the city! Whence fo great wickedness to Latian fhepherds? whence Hath this nettle, O Gradivus, touched your defcendents? Behold a man, illuftrious by family, and rich, is given to a

man;

You neither shake your helmet, nor with your fpear fmite the earth,

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Nor complain to the father!-Go therefore, and depart from the acres

well as the first and most antient ancestors of the Romans; hence Juvenal calls them Latii paftores. So Sat. viii. 1.274-5. Majorum primus quifquis fuit ille tuorum, Aut paftor fuit, &c.

Whence could fuch monftrous, fuch abominable wickedness, be derived to a people, who once were fimple fhepherds!

128. This nettle.] Urtica-a nettle literally, but, by Met. the ftinging or tickling of lewdnefs. So we call being angry, being nettled; and it stands, with us, to denote an excitation of the paffions.

Gradivus.] A name of Mars, from Gr. Keadaa, to brandish a spear. Some derive it from gradior, because he was fuppofed to go or march in battle. Homer has both these ideas

Ηιε μακρα βίβας κραδαων δολιχόσκιον ἔγκος.

See Virg. Æn. iii. 34. Gradivumque patrem, &c.

129. Is given.] Traditur-is delivered up in marriage, as a thing purchased is delivered to the buyer, so man to man, on payment of dowry, as for a wife.

130. You neither shake, &c.] In token of anger and refentment of fuch abomination.

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131. Nor complain, &c.] To Jupiter, the father of all the gods, or, perhaps, Juvenal means your father," as fuppofing with Hefiod that Mars was the fon of Jupiter and Juno. So Homer II. . though fome, as Ovid, make him the fon of Juno without a father. Ov. Faft. v. 229, &c.

Go therefore.] Since you are fo unconcerned at these things, as to fhew no figns of difpleasure at them, you may as well depart from us entirely.

Depart.] Cede for difcede, the fimple for the compo-
Invitus, regina, tuo de litore

fite. So Virg. Æn. vi. 460.

ceffi.

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Jugeribus campi, quem negligis. Officium crâs
Primo fole mihi peragendum in valle Quirini :
Quæ caufa officii? quid quæris? nubit amicus,
Nec multos adhibet. liceat modò vivere: fient,

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Fient ifta palam, cupient & in acta referri.

Interea tormentum ingens nubentibus hæret,

Quòd nequeunt parere, & partu retinere maritos.
Sed melius, quod nil animis in corpora juris
Natura indulget; fteriles moriuntur, & illis
Turgida non prodeft conditâ pyxide Lyde,
Nec prodeft agili palmas præbere Luperco.

140

131-2. The harsh field.] The Campus Martius, a large field near Rome, between the city and the Tyber, where all manner of robuft and martial exercifes were performed, over which Mars was fuppofed to prefide. By the poet's using the epithet harfh, or fevere, he may be fuppofed to allude to the harsh and fevere conflicts there exhibited; or to Mars himself, to whom this is given by Martial, Ep. xxx. 1. 10.

Cum feveri fugit oppidum martis.

132. Which you neglect.] By not vindicating its honour, and not punishing those, who have exchanged the manly exercises of the Campus Martius, for the most abandoned effeminacy.

A bus'nefs, to-morrow.] In order to expofe the more, and fatirize the more feverely, thefe male-marriages, the poet, here, introduces a conversation between two perfons on the subject.

The word officium is peculiarly relative to marriage, nuptiale or nuptiarum being underflood. Suet. in Claud. c. 26. Cujus officium nuptiarum, & ipfe cum Agrippina celebravit. So Petron. Confurrexi ad officium nuptiale.

Such is the meaning of officium in this place, as relative to what follows. He was to attend the ceremony at fun-rife, at the temple of Romulus, which was a place where marriagecontracts were often made.

134. A friend marries.] The word nubo (as has been obferved) properly belonging to the woman, as duco to the man. Nubit here is used to mark out the abominable tranfaction.

135. Nor does he admit many.] He does not invite many people to the ceremony, withing to keep it rather private. He had not, perhaps, fhaken off all fear of the Scantinian law.― See before, 1. 43, note.

Only let us live, &c.] These feem to be Juvenal's

words.

Of the harsh field, which you neglect.-A bus'ness, to

morrow

Early, is to be dispatched by me in the vale of Quirinus. What is the cause of the bus'nefs? why do you afk? a friend

marries :

Nor does he admit many. Only let us live, these things will be done,

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Done openly, and will defire to be reported in the public

registers.

Mean while a great torment sticks to those (thus) marrying, That they can't bring forth, and retain by birth (of children) their husbands.

But it is better, that, to their minds, no authority over their bodies

140

Doth nature indulge; barren they die: and to them
Turgid Lyde, with her medicated box, is of no use,
Nor does it avail to give their palms to the nimble Lupercus.

words. Only let us have patience, and if we live a little longer, we shall not only fee fuch things done, but done openly; and not only this, but we shall fee the parties concerned with to have them recorded in the public regifters.

Juvenal faw the increafe of all this mifchief, and might, from this, venture to foretel what actually came to pass: for Salvian, who wrote in the 5th century, fpeaking of this dedecoris fcelerifque confortium, as he calls it, fays, that it fpred "all over the city, and though the act itself was not common "to all, yet the approbation of it was."

66

137. Mean while, &c.] The poet here, with much humour, fcoffs at thefe unnatural wretches in very ludicrous terms.

138. Retain their husbands.] Barrennefs was frequently a cause of divorce.

141. Turgid Lyde.] Some woman of that name, perhaps called turgida from her corpulency, or from her preparing and felling medicines to cure barrennefs, and to occafion fertility and promote conception. Conditus, literally, fignifies feafoned-mixed, made favoury, and the like-here it implies, that the fold fome conferve, or the like, which was mixed, feafoned, or, as we may fay, medicated with various drugs, and put into boxes for fale.

142. The nimble Lupercus.] The Lupercalia were feafts fa

cred

Vicit & hoc monftrum tunicati fuscina Gracchi,
Luftravitque fugâ mediam gladiator arenam,
Et Capitolinis generofior, & Marcellis,

Et Catuli, Paulique minoribus, & Fabiis, &
Omnibus ad podium fpectantibus: his licèt ipfum
Admoveas, cujus tunc munere retia mifit.
Effe aliquos manes, & fubterranea regna,

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cred to Pan, that he might preferve their flocks from wolves (a lupis) hence the priests were called Luperci. The Lupercalia appears to have been a feast of purification, being folemnized on the dies nefafti, or non-court-days of February, which derives its name from Februo, to purify; and the very day of the celebration was called Februaca. The ceremony was very fingular and strange.

In the first place, a facrifice was killed of goats and a dog: then two children, noblemen's fons, being brought thither, fome of the Luperci stained their foreheads with the bloody knife, while others wiped it off with locks of wool dipped in milk. This done, they ran about the streets all naked, but the middle, and, having cut the goat-fkins into thongs, they lafhed all they The women, fo far from avoiding their ftrokes, held out the palms of their hands to receive them, fancying them to be great helpers of conception. See Kennet, Antiq. B. ii. Part ii. c. z. Shakespear alludes to this-Jul. Cæf. Act i. Sc. ii. former part.

met.

μύρμος,

143. The fork.] Fufcina-a fort of three-pronged fork or trident, used by a particular kind of fencer or gladiator, who was armed with this, and with a net-hence called Retiarius. His adversary was called Mirmillo (from Gr. formicaSee Ainsworth) and was armed with a fhield, fcythe, and headpiece, with the figure of a fish on the creft. The Retiarius tried to throw his net over the Mirmillo's head, and fo entangle him, faying, when he caft the net-Pifcem peto, non te peto. The Mirmillo is fometimes called the fecutor or pursuer, because if the Retiarius miffed him, by throwing his net too far, or too fhort, he inftantly took to his heels, running about the arena for his life, that he might gather up his net for a fecond caft; the Mirmillo, in the mean time, as fwiftly pursuing him, to prevent him of his defign. This feems to be meant, 1. 144. Luftravitque fugâ, &c. which intimates the fight of the Retiarius from the Mirmillo..

--Coated, &c.] Tunicatus, i. e. dreffed in the tunica, or habit of the Retiarii, which was a fort of coat without sleeves, in which they fought.

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