Atque habitas, Coro semper tollendus et Austro, 270 275 Et plenum magnis trabibus mare; plus hominum est jam fron. Horace speaks of it as an ingredient in an excellent sauce (S. ii. 4. 68: "Corycioque croco sparsum stetit "). This explains sacci olentis,' the sweet-smelling bag. Ruperti says Corycus in Crete is meant, because Crete is mentioned below (v. 270), which, if there were no better reason, would show that this is not Crete. The author of the article Corycus' (the Cretan) in Dict. Geog. says Juvenal's vessel "evidently belonged to this town." There is no evidence of the kind. As to Corus see x. 180. Hermann thinks v. 269 an interpolation because of its "nimia acerbitas," and he adds "ipsum orationis cursum inanis amplificationis strepitus tardat," which is not intelligible to me. 271. Passum et municipes Jovis] Pas'raisin wine,' for which Crete was famous. Martial calls it the poor man's 'mulsum :' sum was "Gnossia Minoae genuit vindemia Cretae Hoc tibi, quod mulsum pauperis esse solet." (xiii. 106.) The Cretans had a Zeus of their own. Rhea, to save the child she was ready to give birth to from his father Cronos, hid herself in a cave of Mount Dicte or Ida in Crete, with which island the early years of Zeus are commonly connected (see xiii. 41). The wine-jars therefore are said to be countrymen of Jove's, as the 'siluri' are called municipes' of Crispinus (iv. 33). 272. Hic tamen] That is the 'funambulus' (v. 266). "The rope-dancer however, if he hazards his life, does so to avoid starvation: you hazard yours not to obtain necessaries but superfluities, to add another to your 999 talents or your 99 mansions" (Mayor). I see nothing about 999 talents or 99 mansions. He says the man follows his rash trade to get a great deal of money and a great many houses, while the other follows his to keep out cold and hunger. See above, v. 86, n.: "Aedificator erat Cetronius." Es' must be understood after 'temerarius.' 276. plenum magnis trabibus mare;] Trabs' is sometimes used for a ship, as in Horace, C. i. 1. 13: "ut trabe Cypria Myrtoum pavidus nauta secet mare." Achaintre's note on plus hominum est jam,' "Qui naufragium pertulerunt quam qui evaserunt," is derived from the Scholiast, who is plainly wrong. Juvenal says there are more men at sea than on shore. The use of the comparative where one branch of the comparison is not expressed is common: as, for instance, v. 31 of this satire: "velocius et citius nos Corrumpunt vitiorum exempla domestica." The Carpathian sea was named from the island Carpathos directly between Rhodes and Crete. "Quicunque Bithyna lacessit Carpathium pelagus carina." (Hor. C. i. 35. 8.) Gaetulia only touched the coast of the Atlantic. It was separated from the Mediterranean by Mauretania, Numidia, and the province Africa; but Gaetuli' is commonly used for the Africans, and here 'Gaetula aequora' is put loosely for the African waters of the Mediterranean. Mons Calpe is the present Rock of Gibraltar. Juvenal says this multitude of ships will not only cross the Carpathian and Libyan seas, but pass the pillars of Hercules (of which Calpe was one and Abyla on the African coast was the other) and hear the sun hissing as he sets in the western waters. Horace uses 'transilio' in this way: "Non tangenda rates transiliunt vada" (C. i. 3. 24). Aequora transiliet, sed longe Calpe relicta 281. Grande operae pretium] This is a common expression. See ix. 28, xii. 127, and vi. 474, n. As to follis' see xiii. 61, n. 'Aluta' is prepared leather. In vii. 192 it is used for a shoe. Here it means a leathern purse and 'tumida' like 'tenso' means that it is well filled. The name is from 'alumen' (alum), in which it was steeped to soften it. So we are told in Dict. Ant., art. Calceus.' 'Juvenes marinos' the Scholiast explains to be the Tritons and Nereids, Heinrich "the young gentlemen and ladies of the sea." Horace asks, "Quem mortis timuit gradum Qui siccis oculis monstra natantia, Qui vidit mare turgidum ?" (C. i. 3. 17.) 284. Non unus mentes agitat furor.] He goes back to what he said in v. 136, that avarice is madness. Some are mad one way and some another. Orestes was driven mad by the Erinnyes of his mother, and Ajax was mad when he flogged the beasts and thought he was listening to the cries of Agamemnon and Ulysses. The allusion in the first case is to a scene in the Orestes of Euripides (v. 266, sqq.) where he becomes suddenly wild and cries, ὦ Φοῖβ', ἀποκτενοῦσί μ' αἱ κυνώπιδες, γοργῶπες, ἐνέρων ἱερίαι, δειναὶ θεαί, and his sister Electra, who has her arms round him, answers, 280 285 290 οὔτοι μεθήσω· χεῖρα δ ̓ ἐμπλέξασ' ἐμὴν σχήσω σε πηδᾶν δυστυχῆ πηδήματα. The second case is taken from the second scene of Sophocles' play of Ajax. 287. Parcat tunicis licet atque lacernis,] Though he does not tear his clothes, the man is mad and wants a guardian who tempts the sea for gain. As to 'lacerna' see S. i. 27, n. Curator 'is the technical name for the guardian of an insane person. He was chosen by the praetor from among the agnati' (relations in the male line) of the patient. See note on Hor. S. ii. 3. 217 "interdicto huic omne adimat jus Praetor et ad sanos abeat tutela proAs to tabula distinguitur pinquos." unda' see S. xii. 58. He describes money as silver engraved with inscriptions and miniatures. 290. hujus] such as this.' See xiii. 103, n. 293. piperisve coempti;] The ancients got their pepper from India probably through Syria. P. and other MSS. have 've;' other MSS. have 'que.' It does not much matter, though 've' may be more accurate. Corn and pepper need not be supposed to form the same cargo, even if we have que,' which Heinrich has. 294. nil fascia nigra minatur ;] 'Fascia' is a bandage (see S. vi. 263; ix. 14), and the Scholiast explains it here as "nubes ducta per caelum." It is nowhere else used in any such sense, but it is easily understood. Aestivum tonat." Infelix hac forsitan ipsa. Tantis parta malis cura majore metuque The man is so eager to be off on his voyage 298. Sed cujus votis modo non] Sed' seems to mean 'but more than this.' Heinrich takes modo non' together, so as to be equivalent to 'vix.' I think he is mistaken, and that 'modo' is but now.' One day saw the man with grand expectations, the next day saw him a beggar. He for whom lately the gold of the Tagus had not been enough will be satisfied with a rag about his loins and a morsel of food got by begging. Mr. Long thinks 'modo' belongs to' votis.' 66 It limits the word to which it is joined, as in 'tantum modo,'' so much and no more.' So this expresses the extravagance of the man's wishes; his bare wishes' all Pactolus would not have satisfied." This is true, but here I still incline to think ‘modo' is 'lately.' It is a common meaning. 299. Quod Tagus] See iii. 55, n. The Pactolus was in Lydia. See Hor. Epod. xv. 20: "Tibique Pactolus fluat." The pic 295 300 305 310 tures of their wreck which were hung up by those who could afford it in the temples (S. xii. 27, n.) were carried about by others to excite pity and get alms. See Pers. i. 88. 306. Servorum noctu Licinus jubet,] As to this man see S. i. 109, n.: "Pallante et Licinis." This man posted a whole regiment of slaves about his house with buckets (hamis) for fear of fire. Attonitus' is only a stronger word for territus,' he was wild with fear for his fine things. It is used in the same way above, xii. 21. As to electrum' see v. 38, "Heliadum crustas;" ‘signis,' viii. 110; ‘Phrygiaque columna,' above, 89; 'ebur,' xi. 123, sqq.; 'testudine,' vi. 80, n., xi. 95, n. 308. Dolia nudi Non ardent Cynici:] He says the Cynic's tub does not take fire. This is Diogenes. He calls him 'nudus' because he wore no tunic. See note on S. xiii. 122. The dolium' was made of clay. If any one broke it, he could make another next day, or patch the old one with lead. It is not "a new tub will be made and the old one turned to some account (Mayor), even if the true reading be 'atque' which Jahn, Hermann, [and Ribbeck] adopt from P. and other MSS. Atque would mean nay more than that, he will patch up the old one and let it stay.' Aut' is the reading of most MSS. Either will do in my opinion. · 311. Sensit Alexander,] The story of Alexander's interview with Diogenes, and Magnum habitatorem, quanto felicior hic qui Nullum numen abest si sit Prudentia: nos te, 315 In quantum sitis atque fames et frigora poscunt, how the Cynic asked him not to stand between him and the sun, is known to every schoolboy. Plutarch (vit. Alex. c. 14) tells it thus: s dè èkeîvos (Alexander) ἀσπασάμενος καὶ προσειπὼν αὐτὸν (Diogenes), ἠρώτησεν εἴ τινος τυγχάνει δεόμενος· μικρὸν, εἶπεν,‘ἀπὸ τοῦ ἡλίου μεταστῆθι. Πρὸς τοῦτο λέγεται τὸν ̓Αλέξ. ανδρον οὕτω διατεθῆναι καὶ Davμáσa καταφρονηθέντα τὴν ὑπεροψίαν καὶ τὸ μέγεθος τοῦ ἀνδρὸς, ὥστε τῶν περὶ αὐτὸν ὡς ἀπῄεσαν διαγελώντων καὶ σκωπτόντων, ‘ἀλλὰ μὴν ἐγὼ, εἶπεν, “ εἰ μὴ Αλέξ. ανδρος ἤμην Διογένης ἂν ἤμην, which does not mean, as it is commonly rendered, that if he had not been Alexander he should have wished to be like Diogenes, but that he should have been like to him in his contempt for the world. The answers this unmannerly Cynic is said to have got from Aristippus are told in Horace (Epp. i. 17. 13, sqq.). As to Alexander see x. 168: "Unus Pellaeo juveni non sufficit orbis." Juvenal calls Diogenes Magnum,' perhaps because Alexander was so called. 315. Nullum numen abest] [In this passage Po have habes' some have 'abest.' The writer, says Ribbeck, repeats the words 'nullum numen. . . deam' (x. 365) with evident pleasure. But there is no pleasure in reading the words here, for they have no intelligible connexion with the context.] In quantum' means no more than quantum:' it is to whatever lengths.' As to Epicurus 320 325 see xiii. 123, n. The modesty of Socrates' wants is well known from the Memorabilia of Xenophon and the Clouds of Aristophanes, who made it a matter of ridicule. 321. Sapientia] [Nature which the Stoies professed to follow as their guide never differs from Sapientia or philosophy. (See S. xiii. 20.) Μ. Antoninus says (vii. 11): "To the rational animal the same act is according to nature and according to reason.”] 322. videor te claudere :] He says "perhaps I seem to confine you by too rigid examples : well then, mix a little of modern life with theirs: go as far as the amount Otho fixed for the census of an eques; or if this is not enough, if this makes you frown and pout your lip, take the worth of two equites or even three; make up a third 400,000:"millia' is to be supplied. All this is explained on S. iii. 154. The way of speaking is like Persius vi. 78, sqq. [Ribbeck has 'ludere' for 'claudere,' a conjecture, I suppose, derived from ‘cludere,' the reading of Pg; and a bad conjecture.] 327. Si nondum impleri gremium,] 'Gremium' is so used in S. vii. 215: “Quis gremio Enceladi doctique Palaemonis affert Quantum grammaticus meruit labor?" It is the fold of the toga in which the purse was commonly carried. Narcissus was the chief favourite of Claudius Caesar. He made a fortune of more than 100,000,000 sesterces (about 800,0007.) according to Dion (60. 34). It was he and not Clau Nec Croesi fortuna unquam, nec Persica regna dius who ordered the death of Messalina (see x. 339, n., and Tac. Ann. xxi. 37, 38). Claudius was little more than a cypher in 330 his own court, "adeo illum nemo curabat," Seneca says. SATIRA XV. INTRODUCTION. THIS satire must have been written after Juvenal's residence in Egypt. Under what circumstances he went to that country there is not sufficient authority for saying with any certainty. In v. 27 there is an allusion which gives fair ground for supposing that the poem was written in the reign of Hadrian (see note). It turns upon a case said to have happened not long before. The people of Ombi (v. 35), a town in Upper Egypt, worshipped the crocodile, while those of Tentyra (nearly a hundred miles lower down the Nile) were opposed to that worship, and were particularly distinguished for their skill and courage in killing the crocodile. This caused a feud between the two peoples, and while the Ombites were celebrating a religious festival the Tentyrites came and attacked them. The Ombites were put to flight, and the Tentyrites are represented as having caught one of them and in their fury having eaten him up. This story gives occasion for a good deal of strong contemptuous writing against the Egyptians, their religion and morals, a vivid description of the above savage scene, set off by some fine lines on the more tender instincts of human nature, and the ties of sympathy that unite mankind. The principal subject is revolting, and it was not possible to make it one of general interest. It seems as if the story, whether true or not, had been repeated to Juvenal and had called up all the prejudices a residence among these people had created in his mind. His power in sketching scenes from real life has been seen in the course of these satires, and here we have a picture on a larger scale drawn with a strong and rough hand, such as nearly all his pictures show. The Satire is addressed to Volusius Bithynicus, whoever he may have been. Perhaps he is no more than a name. ARGUMENT. All know, Volusius, the monsters Egypt worships; here 'tis the crocodile, the ibis there; the long-tailed ape at Thebes where Memnon strikes his lyre. Cats, river-fish, and dogs (but not Diana). Onions and leeks no tooth may harm. O holy people, whose gods grow in their gardens! A sheep or goat they may not eat, but human flesh they may. When once Ulysses told such marvellous tales to Alcinous and his guests, some more sober than the rest no doubt were wroth and would have thrown him into the sea, with his tales about Laestrygones and Cyclops. His Scylla and his clashing rocks |