class 10. The fruit itself is called κόμαρον, μεμαίκυλον, οι μιμαίκυλον, (-thenaus, 2. 35.) and in Latin arbutum. It resembles our strawberry very closely, except that it is larger, and has no seeds on the outside of the pulp like that fruit. The arbute tree possesses medicinal qualities: its bark, leaves, and fruit are very astringent; and hence, according to Pliny, the origin of the Latin name unedo, (unus and edo,) because but one berry could be eaten at a time. The same writer describes the fruit as indigestible and unwholesome. Compare Plin. H. N. 19. 24: and 23. 8. Féc, Flore de Virgile, p. 20. Martyn, ad Virg. Georg. 1. 148.

22-28. 22. Sacra. The fountain-heads of streams were supposed to be the residence of the river-deity, and hence were always held sacred. Fountains generally were sacred to the nymphs and rural divinities.-23. Et lituo tuba, &c. " And the sound of the trumpet intermingled with the notes of the clarion." The tuba was straight, and used for infantry; the lituus was bent a little at the end, like the augur's staff, and was used for the cavalry: it had the harsher sound.-25. Detestata. "Held in detestation." Taken passively.-Manet. "Passes the night."Sub Jove frigido. "Beneath the cold sky." Jupiter is here taken figuratively for the higher regions of the air. Compare the Greek phrase érd Aiós.-28. Teretes. "Well-wrought.”—Marsus. For Marsicus. The moun tainous country of the Marsi, in Italy, abounded with wild boars of the fiercest kind.

29-34. 29. Me. Some editions have Te, referring to Mæcenas: an inferior reading.-Edera. "Ivy-crowns." The species of ivy here alluded to is the Edera nigru, sacred to Bacchus, and hence styled Atovésia by the Greeks. It is the Edera poetica of Bauhin. Servius says that poets were crowned with ivy, because the poetic fury resembled that of the Bacchanalians.-Doctarum præmia fontium. Poets are called docti, "learned," in accordance with Grecian usage: doidoì ropoí.-30. Dis miscent superis. "Raise to the converse of the gods above."-33. Euterpe cohibet, &c. Euterpe and Polyhymnia are meant to denote any of the Muses.-34. Lesboum refugit, &c. "Refuses to touch the Lesbian lyre." The lyre is called "Lesbian" in allusion to Sappho and Alcæus, both natives of Lesbos, and both famed for their lyric productions.

ODE. 2. Octavianus assumed his new title of Augustus on the 17th of January (XVIII. Cal. Febr.) A. U. C. 727. On the following night Rome was visited by a severe tempest, and an inundation of the Tiber. The present ode was written in allusion to that event. The poet, regarding the visitation as a mark of divine displeasure, proceeds to inquire on what deity they are to call for succour. Who is to free the Romans from the pollution occasioned by their civil strife? Is it Apollo, god of prophecy? Or Venus, parent of Rome? Or Mars, founder of the Roman line? Or Mercury, messenger of the skies?-It is the last, the avenger of Cæ sar, the deity who shrouds his godhead beneath the person of Augustus. He alone, if heaven spare him to the earth, can restore to us the favour of Jove, and national prosperity.

1-4. 1. Terris. A Græcism for in terras.-Diræ grandinis. Every thing sent by the wrath of the gods (dei ira) was termed dirum.-2. Pater. "The Father of Gods and men." Jupiter. Hatip ȧvoρwv Te Jewv TE.— Rubente dextera. "With his red right hand." Red with the reflected glare

of the thunderbolt: an idea very probably borrowed from some ancient painting.-3. Sacras arces. "The sacred summits of the temples." The lightning struck the capitol containing the temples of Jupiter, Minerva, and Juno.-4. Urbem. "The city," I. e. Rome. Compare Quintilian (8. 2.) “Urbem Romam accipimus."

5-10. 5. Gentes. Understand timentes. "He has terrified the nations, fearing lest," &c. Analogous to the Greek idiom, ¿póbnes un-6. Sœculum Pyrrhae. Alluding to the deluge of Deucalion in Thessaly.-Nova monstra. "Wonders before unseen.”—7. Proteus. A sea-deity, son of Oceanus and Tethys, gifted with prophecy and the power of assuming any form at pleasure. His fabled employment was to keep" the flocks" of Neptune, i. e. the phoca, or seals.-8. Visere. A Græcism for ad visendum.-10. Palumbis. The common reading is columbis; but the true one is palumbis. The "palumba," or "wood-pigeons," construct their nests on the branches and in the hollows of trees; the columbæ, or "doves," are kept in dove-cots.

13-16. 13. Flavum Tiberim. "The yellow Tiber." A recent traveller remarks, with regard to this epithet of the Tiber: "Yellow is an exceedingly undescriptive translation of that tawny colour, that mixture of red brown, grey and yellow, which should answer to flavus here; but I may not deviate from the established phrase, nor do I know a better." (Rome in the nineteenth century, vol. 1. p. 84.)-14. Lilore Etrusco. The violence of the storm forced the waves of the Tiber from the upper or Tuscan shore, and caused an inundation on the lower bank, or left side, of the river, where Rome was situated.-15. Monumenta regis. "The memorie! of King Numa." Alluding to the palace of Numa, which, according to Plutarch, stood in the immediate vicinity of the temple of Vesta, and was distinct from his other residence on the Quirinal hill. (Plut. Vit. Num. c. 14.)-16. Vesta. What made the omen a peculiarly alarming one was, that the sacred fire was kept in this temple, on the preservation of which the safety of the empire was supposed in a great measure to depend. Compare Ovid. Trist. 3. 1. 29. "Hic focus est Vestæ, qui Pallada servat et ignem." If a vestal virgin allowed the sacred fire to be extinguished, she was scourged by the Pontifex Maximus. Such an accident was always esteemed most unlucky, and expiated by offering extraordinary sacrifices. The fire was lighted up again, not from another fire, but from the rays of the sun, in which manner it was renewed every year on the first of March, that day being anciently the beginning of the year. Compare Lipsius, de Vesta et Vestalibus Syntagma.

17-19. 17. Ilia dum se, &c. "While the god of the stream, lending too ready an ear to the wishes of his spouse, proudly shows himself an intemperate avenger to the complaining Ilia." The allusion is to Ilia or Rea Silvia, the mother of Romulus and Remus, and the ancestress of Julius Cæsar, whose assassination she is here represented as bewailing. Ancient authorities differ in relation to her fate. Ennius, cited by Porphyrion in his scholia on this ode, makes her to have been cast into the 'Tiber, previous to which she had become the bride of the Anio. Horace, on the contrary, speaks of her as having married the god of the Tiber, which he here designates as uxorius amnis. Servius (ad Aen. 1. 274.) alludes to this version of the fable, as adopted by Horace and others. Acron also, in his scholia on the present passage, speaks of Ilia as having married the god of the Tiber. According to the account which he gives, Ilia was buried on the banks of the Anio, and the river, having overflowed

its borders, carried her remains down to the Tiber; hence she was said to have espoused the deity of the last mentioned stream. It may not be improper to add here a remark of Niehbuhr's in relation to the name of this female. "The reading Rhea," observes the historian, "is a corruption introduced by the editors, who very unseasonably bethought themselves of the goddess: rea seems only to have signified the culprit, or the guilty woman: it reminds us of rea femina, which often occurs, particularly in Boccacio." (Niehbuhr's Roman History, vol. 1. p. 176. 2d ed. Hare und Thirlwall's transl.)-Nimium. Taken as an adjective, and referring to ultorem. It alludes to the violence of the inundation. Some commenta tors connect it as an adverb with querenti: “the too-complaining."—19. Jove non probante. Jupiter did not approve that the Tiber should undertake to avenge the death of Cæsar, a task which he had reserved for Augustus.

22-27. 22. Graves Persa. "The formidable Parthians." Horace frequently uses the terms Medi and Persa to denote the Parthians. The Median preceded the Persian power, which, after the interval of the Grecian dominion, was succeeded by the Parthian empire. The epithet graves alludes to the defeat of Crassus, and the check of Marc Antony.Perirent. For perituri fuissent.-23. Vitio parentum rara juventus. "Posterity thinned through the guilt of their fathers." Alluding to the excesses of the civil contest.-25. Vocet. For invocet.-Ruentis imperi rebus. "To the affairs of the falling empire." Rebus by a Græcism for ad res.-26. Prece qua. "By what supplications."-27. Virgines sanctæ. Alluding to the vestal virgins.—Minus audientem carmina. "Turning a deaf ear to their solemn prayers." Carmen is frequently used to denote any set form of words either in prose or verse.-As Julius Caesar was Pontifex Maximus at the time of his death, he was also, by virtue of his office, priest of Vesta; it being particularly incumbent on the Pontifex Maximus to exercise a superintending control over the rites of that goddess. Hence the anger of the goddess towards the Romans on account of Cæsar's death.

66

29-39. 29. Scelus. "Our guilt." Alluding to the crimes of the civil war.-31. Nube candentes, &c. Having thy bright shoulders shrouded with a cloud." The gods, when they were pleased to manifest themselves to mortal eye, were generally, in poetic imagery, clothed with clouds, in order to hide, from mortal gaze, the excessive splendour of their presence.Augur Apollo. 'Apollo, god of prophecy."-33. Erycina ridens. "Smiling goddess of Eryx." Venus, so called from her temple on mount Eryx in Sicily.-34. Quam Jocus circum, &c. "Around whom hover Mirth and Love."-36. Respicis. "Thou again beholdest with a favouring eyes When the gods turned their eyes towards their worshippers, it was a sign of favour; when they averted them, of displeasure.--Auctor. "Founder of the Roman line." Addressed to Mars, as the reputed father of Romulus and Remus.-39. Marsi. The common texts have Mauri. But the people of Mauretania were never remarkable for their valour, and their cavalry besides were always decidedly superior to their infantry. The Marsi, on the other hand, were reputed to have been one of the most valiant nations of Italy.-Cruentum. This epithet beautifully describes the foe, as transfixed by the weapon of the Marsian and "weltering in his blood."

41-51. 41. Sive mutata, &c. "Or if, winged son of the benign Maia, having changed thy form, thou assumest that of a youthful hero on the earth." Mercury, the offspring of Jupiter and Maia, is here addressed. -Juvenem. Augustus.-43. Patiens vocari, &c. "Suffering thyself to be

called the avenger of Cæsar." An imitation of the Greek idiom, for te vocari Cæsaris ultorem.-46. Lætus. "Propitious."-47. Iniquum. "Offended at."-48. Ocyor aura. "An untimely blast." The poet prays that the departure of Augustus for the skies may not be accelerated by the crimes and vices of his people.-49. Magnos triumphos. Augustus, in the month of August, A. U. C. 725, triumphed for three days in succession: on the first day over the Pannonians, Dalmatians, Iapydæ, and their neighbours, together with some Gallic and Germanic tribes; on the second day, for the victory at Actium; on the third, for the reduction of Egypt. The successes over the Gauls and Germans had been obtained for him by his lieutenant C. Carinas.-50. Pater atque Princeps. Augustus is frequently styled on medals, Pater Patria, a title which the succeeding emperors adopted from him.-51. Medos. "The eastern nations." Alluding particularly to the Parthians. Compare note on line 22 of this Ode.-Equitare inultos. "To transgress their limits with impunity." To make unpunished inroads into the Roman territory.

ODE 3. Addressed to the ship which was about to convey Virgil to the shores of Greece. The poet prays that the voyage may be a safe and propitious one: alarmed, however, at the same time by the idea of the dangers which threaten his friend, he declaims against the inventor of navigation, and the daring boldness of mankind in general.-According to Heyne, (Virgilii vita per annos digesta,) this ode would appear to have been written A. U. C. 735, when, as Donatus states, the bard of Mantua had determined to retire to Grecce, and Asia, and employ there the space of three years in correcting and completing the Æneid. (Donat. Virg. vit. § 51.) "Anno vero quinquagesimo secundo," observes Donatus, "ut ultimam manum Eneidi imponeret, statuit in Græciam et Asiam secedere, triennioque continuo omnem operam limationi dare, ut reliqua vita tantum philosophie vacaret. Sed cum ingressus iter Athenis occurisset Augusto, ab Oriente Romam revertenti, una cum Cæsare redire statuit. Ac cum Megara, vicinum Athenis oppidum, visendi gratia peteret, languorem nactus est: quem non intermissa navigatio auxit, ita ut gravior indies, tandem Brundisium adventarit, ubi diebus paucis obiit, X. Kal. Octobr. C. Sentio, Q. Lucretio Coss.

1-4. 1. Sic te Diva, potens Cypri, &c. "O Ship, that owest to the shores of Attica, Virgil entrusted by us to thy care, so may the goddess who rules over Cyprus, so may the brothers of Helen, bright luminaries, and the father of the winds direct thy course, all others being confined except Japyx, that thou mayest give him up in safety to his destined haven, and preserve the one half of my soul." With reddas and serves, understand ut, which stands in opposition to sic.-Diva potens Cypri. Venus. From her power over the sea, she was invoked by the Cnidians, as Edλota, the dis penser of favourable voyages. (Pausan. 1. 14.)-2. Fratres' Helena. Castor and Pollux. It was the particular office of "the brothers of Helen" to bring aid to mariners in time of danger. They were identified by the ancients with those luminous appearances, resembling balls of fire, which are seen on the masts and yards of vessels before and after storms.3. Ventorum pater. Eolus. The island in which he was fabled to have reigned, was Strongyle, the modern Stromboli.—4. Obstrictis aliis. An allusion to the Homeric fable of Ulysses and his bag of adverse winds.Iapyga. The west-north-west. It received its name from Iapygia, in Lower Italy, which country lay partly in the line of its direction. It was the most favourable wind for sailing from Brundisium towards the south

ern parts of Greece, the vessel having, in the course of her voyage to At tica, to double the promontories of Tænarus and Malca.

9-15. 9. Illi robur et æs triplex, &c. "That mortal had the strength of triple brass around his breast." Robur et æs triplex is here put for robur æris triplicis.-12. Africum. The west-south-west wind, answering to the A4 of the Greeks.-13. Aquilonibus. The term Aquilo de notes in strictness the wind which blows from the quarter directly opposite to that denominated Africus. A strict translation of both terms, however, would diminish, in the present instance, the poetic beauty of the passage. The whole may be rendered as follows: "The headlong fury of the south-west wind, contending with the north-eastern blasts."-14. Tristes Hyadas. "The rainy Hyades." The Hyades were seven of the fourteen daughters of Atlas, their remaining sisters being called Pleiades. These virgins bewailed so immoderately the death of their brother Hyas, who was devoured by a lion, that Jupiter out of compassion, changed them into stars, and placed them in the head of Taurus, where they still retain their grief, their rising and setting being attended with heavy rains. Hence the epithet tristes ("weeping," "rainy,") applied to them by the poet.-15. Adria. Some commentators insist, that Adria is here used for the sea in general, because, as the Adriatic faces the south-east, the remark of Horace cannot be true of the south. In the age of the poet, however, the term Adria was used in a very extensive sense. The sea which it designated, was considered as extending to the southern coast of Italy, and the western shores of Greece, and the Sinus Ionicus (corresponding exactly with the present gulf of Venice) was regarded merely as a part of it.

17-19. 17. Quem mortis timuit gradum. "What path of death did he fear." i. e. what kind of death. Equivalent to quam viam ad Orcum. -18. Rectis oculis. "With steady gaze," i. e. with fearless eye. Most editions read siccis oculis, which Bentley altered, on conjecture, to rectis. Others prefer fixis oculis.-19. Et infames scopulos Acroceraunia. "And the Acroceraunia, ill-famed cliffs." The Ceraunia were a chain of mountains along the coast of Northern Epirus, forming part of the boundary between it and Illyricum. That portion of the chain which extended beyond Oricum, formed a bold promontory, and was termed Acroceraunia ('AKρOKEρavvia) from its summit, (axpa) being often struck by lightning (kepavvds). This coast was much dreaded by the mariners of antiquity because the mountains were supposed to attract storms, and Augustus narrowly escaped shipwreck here when returning from Actium. The Acroceraunia are now called Monte Chimera.

22-39. 22. Dissociabili. "Forbidding all intercourse." Taken in an active sense.-24. Transsiliunt. "Bound contemptuously over."-26. Audax omnia perpeti. A Greek construction: Spaods návra tλñvai. “Boldly daring to encounter every hardship."-25. Per vetitum et nefas. "Through what is forbidden by all laws both human and divine." The common text has vetitum nefas, which makes a disagreeable pleonasm.-27 Atrox Iapeti genus. "The resolute son of Iapetus." Prometheus.-28. Fraude mala. "By an unhappy fraud."-29. Post ignem ætheria domo subductum. "After the fire was drawn down by stealth from its mansion in the skies."-33. Corripuit gradum. "Accelerated its pace." We have here the remnant of an old tradition respecting the longer duration of life in primeval times.-34. Expertus (est). "Essayed."-36. Perrupit Acheronta Herculeus labor. "The toiling Hercules burst the barriers of the lower world." Alluding to the descent of Hercules to the shades