535 Ille petit veniam, quoties non abstinet uxor Concubitu sacris observandisque diebus, Magnaque debetur violato pœna cadurco, Et movisse caput visa est argentea serpens: Illius lacrumæ meditataque murmura præstant, 540 Ut veniam culpæ non abnuat, ansere magno Scilicet et tenui popano corruptus, Osiris. dotum fonte enecant quæsituri luctu alium, quem substituant; et donec invenerint, moerent; derasis etiam capitibus, &c. insigne ei, in dextro latere candicans macula, cornibus luna crescere incipientis; et nodus sub linguá quem cantharum appellant; Plin. viii. 46. Diod. ii. 4 sqq. Cic. N. D. 83. Macr. i. 22. Ammian. xxii. PR. Anubis, the son of Osiris or Typhon, was the constant companion of Osiris and Isis (the sun and moon); he is represented as a man with a dog's head, from which he is called canis; xv. 8. latrans Anubis; Prop. III. xi. 41. latrator; Virg. Æ. viii. 698. PR. Cf. Diod. i. 18. 87. Herod. ii. 66 sq. The chief-priest who personates Anubis laughs in his sleeve at the credulous folly of the people bewailing their lost god.' viii. 29. In the expression currit derisor, there may be an allusion to the appearance of a dog lolling out his tongue and grinning when fatigued with running.' Pers. i. 60. CAS. HN. R. LU. ii. 130. FA. Hor. I S. v. 58. Virg. Æ. vii. 292. xvhoas zúgn Hom. Od. E 285. R. The serpent is the asp (Hor. I Od. xxxvii. 26 sq.) wreathed round the head of the deity, as the symbol of eternity. Elian. GR. Diod. i. Macr. i. 20. Ov. Am. II. xiii. 13. M. ix. 693. (H.) V. Flac. iv. 418. (BU.) R. "I recollect that when I was in Italy, a bust of Isis was found, thus incircled; and was then thought, by the literati, to give light to this very passage." G. 539. Of that priest.' VS. 'Mumbled prayers.' x. 289 sq. haud cuivis promptum est murmur qué humilesque susurros tollere de templis, et aperto vivere voto; Pers. ii. 6 sq. &c. GR. Soph. El. 638 sqq. 8 μáyos ràv iæqdàv úzorovdoguras Luc. Nix. 7. Hor. I Ep. xvi. 59 sqq. The precept of Pythagoras was perà owns suxto: because the person, who is vera simplicitate bonus, recti custos, mirator honesti, is one-nihil arcano qui roget ore deos; Mart. I. xl. 4-6. tunc seito, te esse omnibus cupiditatibus solutum, quum eo perveneris, ut nihil deum roges, nisi quod rogare possis palam. nunc enim quanta dementia est hominum? turpissima vota diis insusurrant: si quis admoverit aurem, conticescent et, quod scire hominem nolunt, deo narrant; Sen. (from Athenodorus) Ep. 10. Tib. II. i. 83 sqq. R. K. 540. The goose' is not mentioned at random that bird was usually sacrificed to Isis, and in Egypt constituted the chief food of her priests. The Romans were at first a little scandalized at this treatment of the ancient guardian of their capitol, but use soon reconciled them to it. G. Herod. ii. 45. GR. ib. 37. urem, Quum dedit ille locum; cophino fœnoque relicto Implet et illa manum, sed parcius: ære minuto, fended. The goddess understood her trade too well, to be offended seriously with a peccadillo of this kind; but then it was necessary that her husband should be represented as extremely delicate on the subject; otherwise, no goose for the priest. G. Macr. i. 20 sq. PR. viii. 29. R. 542. Cf. iii. 14 sqq. PA. Domitian laid a heavy poll-tax on this people; and, that they might not evade it, they were enjoined not to appear abroad without the basket and hay, the badges of their condition. To avoid being detected and insulted by the rabble when they entered the city, these poor persecuted wretches laid aside their degrading accompaniments. This accounts for the epithet tremens, which Juvenal applies to the female fortune-teller; who, if she had been discovered, would, in spite of her lofty pretensions, have been severely punished for contempt of the imperial regulations. G. Mart. VII. lv. SCH. Suet. Dom. 12. Joseph. B. J. vii. 7. PR. 543. Tremens may also mean shivering,' as beggars do, to excite compassion. v. 11. GR. a matre doctus rogare Judæus; Mart. XII. lvii. 13. 545. Nil præter nubes et coeli numen adorant; xiv. 97. R. The trustworthy agent by whom the will of heaven is revealed.' Augurs and birds are called Jovis internuncii et interpretes; Cic. Phil. xiii. 5. Div. ii. 34. R. 546. The Jews appear then to have held the same place in society, as Gipsies at the present day. GR. 547. See Ezek. xiii. "Have ye not seen a vain vision, and have ye not spoken a lying divination, whereas ye say, The LORD saith it: albeit I have not spoken?" v. 7. "Will ye pollute me for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread ?" ibid. 19. &c. M. Pers. ii. 57. K. 548. Spondet, solemnly engages,' is a stronger word than promittit; iii. 43. Cic. for Mur. 41. extr. Sen. Ep. 19. Ov. Her. xvi. 114. V. Flac. vi. 117. (BU.) de infante Scribonius mathematicus præclara spopondit; Suet. Tib. 14. Id. Oth. 4. R. 549. The lungs,' the liver, and the heart were the parts chiefly examined in divinations. Luc. i. 621 sqq. Cic. de Har. Resp. 9. Dio 39. 58. R. 'Doves' were sacrificed to Venus, and from the preceding line this appears to have been a love affair. SCH. 550. Commagene was a part of Syria between Mount Amanus and the Euphrates. R. Harusper; ii. 121. PR. 551. Pectoribus inhians spirantia consulit exta; Virg. Æ. iv. 64. VS. The mention of these smaller animals is to throw ridicule on the pretensions of such fortune-tellers. R. Catelli; see Paus. VI. ii. 2. PA. chat be mo Interdum et pueri: faciet, quod deferat ipse. 555 Hammonis; quoniam Delphis oracula cessants élec Et genus humanum damnat caligo futuri. 552. Of a child.' cf. Psalm cvi. 37 sq. Plut. de Herod. Mal. (near the beginning); Macr. iii. 7. PR. Ammian. XXIX. ii. 17. Eus. H. E. viii. 14. Cassiod. H.Tr. vi. 48. Theodoret. iii. 21. LN. R. Egnatius (iii. 116) is here again alluded to, who after instigating the daughter of Soranus to magical arts, denounced her to the emperor Nero; by whose order, she suffered at the same time with her father. VS. This anecdote may be genuine, though Tacitus does not mention it; An. xvi. 32. G. Deferat; 220. R. i. 33. iv. 48. M. 553. Chaldæa and its capital Babylon were famous for the astrological skill of the inhabitants. In that city there was the temple of Belus said to be the inventor of the science. Plin. vi. 26. Cic. Div. i. 2. 92. Gell. i. 9. xiv. 1. Diod. ii. 3. iii. 8. xvii. 11 sq. See K, and CAS, on Pers. v. 46 sqq. These Chaldæans' among other names were called astrologers' 554. and mathematicians:' 562. Among the benign stars they reckoned Venus; 570. among those of malignant aspect were Saturn, 569 sq. and Mars, x. 313 sq. Ov. Am. I. viii. 29. From casting a person's nativity, 579. or observing his horoscope, Suet. Aug. 94 extr. they predicted future events, and the hour and day at which any affair of importance ought to be transacted, 575 sqq. For this purpose they used books, 578. or tables, 558. and diaries, 574. which contained the positions &c. of the stars at any given time, iii. 43 sqq. The calculations which were requisite in judicial astrology were called numeri Thrasylli; 576. Babylonii numeri; Hor. I Od. xi. 2. Chaldaica rationes; Cic. Div. ii. 47. 42 sqq. cf. vii. 194 sqq. ix. 33. xiv. 248 sqq. xvi. 4. Manil. iii. 160 sqq. iv. 122 sqq. 294 sqq. Ov. Ib. 209 sqq. Macr. Plin. ii. 8 sqq. vii. 49. Prop. IV. i. Hor. II Od. xvii. 17–24. (MI. JN.) Tac. An. iv. 58. (ER.) Ammian. XXVIII. iv. 24. (LN.) R. PR. 554. Cf. viii. 125. R. distressed for water, in his Libyan expe. dition, a ram suddenly appeared from the sand and led him to a fountain.' Bacchus regarded this ram as Jupiter, and, accordingly, built a magnificent temple to Jupiter Hammon on the spot where the water was found: the name of Hammon being derived from äpuos sand,' and ram's horns being attributed to the deity. Hygin. P. Astr. ii. 20. This temple is environed by a thick forest, the only one in those parts, Luc. ix. 522— 527. Curt. IV. vii. 16. and by several springs, among others the celebrated fountain of the sun' (which is here put for the oracle itself): Herod. ii. 42. iv. 181. Diod. i. 13. xvii. 50. Plin. ii. 103. v. 5. vi. 29. Curt. IV. vii. 22. Lucr. vi. 848 sqq. Ov. M. xv. 309 sqq. Sil. iii. 669 sqq. R. FA. PR. "The fount that play'd In times of old through Ammon's shade, Though icy cold by day it ran, Yet still, like souls of mirth, began To burn when night was near;" Moore, Irish Melodies. The oracle of Apollo at Delphi' is said to have ceased' at the birth of Christ: Me puer Hebræus divos Deus ipse gubernans cedere sede jubet, &c. cf. Plut. de Or. Def. PR. Eus. Pr. Ev. v. p. 205 sqq. Cic. Div. ii. 57. Strab. xvii. p. 553. Luc. v. 112 sqq. CAS. Antib. Ex. i. 12. It is mentioned, however, as having given responses in the reigns of Nero and Julian; Suet. Ner. 40. Themist. Or. xix. Theodor. H. E. iii. 21. R. and again at the birth of Honorius (unless it be merely the poet's fiction); et dudum taciti rupere silentia Delphi; Claud. IV Cons. Hon. 144. If the oracle of Jupiter Hammon did survive the rest, it was probably because, as Voltaire says of El Dorado, few or none could go to seek it. G. 556. Punishes,' PR. or ⚫ renders them miserable,' leads them headlong on their ruin,' cf. Virg. Æ. xii. 727. HK. iii. 116. or torments:' prudens futur i temporis exitum caliginosa nocte premit deus ridetque si mortalis ultra fas trepidat; Hor. IV Od. xxix. 29 sqq. 555. It is fabled that Bacchus being R. Y Præcipuus tamen est horum, qui sæpius, exsul, 560 Inde fides arti, sonuit si dextera ferro éá Lævaque, si longo castrorum in carcere mansit. ka Contigit et parvâ tandem caruisse Seripho. 565 Consulit ictericæ lento de funere matris, Ante tamen de te, Tanaquil tua: quando sororem 557. Understand fuit. BRI. This astrologer was Seleucus, Suet. Oth. 4-6. PR. or Ptolemæus; Tac. H. i. 22. Plut. which were, probably, but different names of the same person. BU. ER. The professors of astrology were alternately banished and recalled, persecuted and cherished, as the events they predicted were prosperous or adverse to the fortunate candidates for power. That they were the occasion of frequent commotions among this ambitious and credulous people, cannot be doubted; and Tacitus says of them with equal truth and spirit, hoc genus hominum potentibus infidum, sperantibus fallax, quod in civitate nostra et vetabitur semper, et retinebitur; H. i. 22. ii. 62. A. ii. 32. xii. 52. Suet. Tib. 36. Vit. 14. R. G. 558. Ptolemy accompanied Otho into Spain and there predicted that he would survive Nero. From his success in this instance (says Tacitus) he took courage and ventured to predict his elevation to the empire. Otho believed it (or rather affected to believe it), and from that moment he determined to work the destruction of Galba. In the dreadful scenes which followed, Ptolemy was a principal actor. G. LU. The effect of such predictions on an ambitious spirit is finely exemplified in the tragedy of Macbeth. ""Tis strange: And oftentimes, to win us to our harm, The instruments of darkness tell us truths, Win us with honest trifles, to betray us In deepest consequence;" I. iii. Conducenda dearly purchased,' LU. ' venal' mercenary.' 586. iii. 309 sq. Those, whose predictions concerned the life of princes or other matters of state were often thrown into prison and not released unless their words were verified by future events. LI. Suet. Tib. 14. PR. 1 Kings xxii. 7-28. 561. In stationary camps (answering to our barracks) there was a black-hole in which malefactors were confined; and when the troops changed their quarters, the prisoners were moved in chains. Tac. A. i. 21. iii. 22. R. 562. Quos gentilitio vocabulo Chaldæos dicere oportet, mathematicos vulgus appellat; Gell. i. 9. PR. Genius,' VS. (in which case habebit means will be thought to have;') LU. or good luck cf. Mart. VI. Ix. 10. VII. lxxvii. 4. Hor. II Ep. ii. 186 sqq. and v. 22. R. Indemnatus "Who has not narrowly escaped the rope." G. 563. "Who has-Begg'd hard for exile, and by special grace, Obtain'd confinement in some desert place." G. One of the Cyclades.' i. 73. R. See note on Her. v. 30. 564. To have been liberated.' PR. Seriphus one of this group, now called Serfino,' is a barren rock about twelve miles in circumference. x. 170. Ov. M. vii. 464. Plin. iv. 12 s 22. viii. 58. Strab. x. p. 487. PR. R. 565." In doubt How long her jaundiced mother will hold out." G. ixrigos morbus regius. Plin. xx. 9. xxx. 11. xxxvi. 31. xxxvii. 10. cf. iii. 43. PR. R. 566. Thy future spouse: Tanaquil tu a nesciat illud; Auson. Epist. xxiii. 31. 559. The great citizen' was Galba. Tanaquil, the wife of Tarquin the elder, Suet. 19. PR. cf. i. 53. R. ii. was a marvellous adept in the art of 104 sq. divination. VS. accepisse id augurium læta 506. Has clanked with chains.' VS. dicitur Tanaquil, perita (ut vulgo Etrusci) Efferat et patruos; an sit victurus adulter Post ipsam? Quid enim majus dare numina possunt Ad primum lapidem vectari quum placet, hora Angulus, inspecta genesi collyria poscit. cælestium prodigiorum mulier; Liv. i. 34. modum tædæ accenditur alitque flammam PR. Ib. 39. 41. In conjunction with what heavenly body.' This was the moon, according to Cicero, Pliny, and Macrobius. PR. "In what sign bright Venus ought to rise To shed her mildest influence from the skies." G. Veneris salubre sidus; Luc. VS. Se proferat: Suet. Ner. 6. extr. R. 571. Dentur lucro are lucky.' Hor. I Od. ix. 14. R. 572. Avoid her as a thing of ill omen.' SCH. 573. Whose well-thumbed manual of astrology' (note on 553.) becomes as yellow, shining, and transparent, as rich amber.'VS. LU. Plin. xxxvii. 2 sq. PR.v. 24. 38. ix. 50. Ov. M. ii. 364 sqq. Mart. IV. lix. The ladies used to hold or rub the amber in their hands for the sake of its scent; Dioscor. 1.93. redolent quod sucina trita; Mart. III. lxv. 4 sq. fragravit ore quod sucinorum rapta de manu gleba; V. xxxvii. 9. 11. spirant sucina virginea quod regelata manu; XI. viii. 1. 6. The epithet 'fat' may also refer to its nature: si naturam sucini admoto igne tentes, in pinguem et olentem: mox ut in picem resinamve lentescit; Tac. G. 45. R. 575. The superstition of being guided in every thing by astrological calculations appears to have struck its roots inconceivably deep. Nearly three centuries after Juvenal's time, we find the Romans characterized by the same folly, and almost in the same words: multi apud eos negantes esse superas potestates in cœlo, nec in publico prodeunt nec prandent nec lavari arbitrantur se cautius posse, antequam ephemeride scrupulose sciscitata didicerint ubi sit signum Mercurii; &c. Ammian. XXVIII. iv. 24. Here we have Pope's "godless regent trembling at a star;" Mor. Ess. i. 90. Such are the monstrous inconsistencies of atheisin! G. R. 576. Thrasyllus was an eminent astrologer at the court of Tiberius. Suet. Aug. 98. Tib. 14 sq. 62. Cal. 19. Tac. A. vi. 20. 22. Dio. lv. 11. VS. PR. R. 577. If she wishes to go out for a little airing in her chair or carriage.' VS. The miles were marked by mile-stones, inscribed with the number, and were reckoned from a golden column which stood in the forum. These mile-stones were first put up by C. Gracchus. SCH. Plut. Grac. PR. 578. The ancients considered the itching of any part to be a prognostication of something about to happen. J. E, Pr. iv. 7. Plaut. Mil. II. iv. 44. Bac. V. ii. 75. Amph. I. i. 139. Ps. I. i. 105. JS. Isid. Or. viii. 19. R. 579. See note on 553. R. Hic oculis ego nigra meis collyria |