190

mentio nec, prima si luce egressa reverti nocte solet, tacito bilem tibi contrahat uxor, umida suspectis referens multicia rugis vexatasque comas et vultum auremque calentem. protinus ante meum quidquid dolet exue limen, pone domum et servos et quidquid frangitur illis aut perit, ingratos ante omnia pone sodales. interea Megalesiacae spectacula mappae Idaeum sollemne colunt, similisque triumpho praeda caballorum praetor sedet ac, mihi pace 195 immensae nimiaeque licet si dicere plebis, totam hodie Romam circus capit et fragor aurem percutit, eventum viridis quo colligo panni.

nam si deficeret, maestam attonitamque videres hanc urbem, veluti Cannarum in pulvere victis 200 consulibus. spectent iuvenes, quos clamor et audax sponsio, quos cultae decet adsedisse puellae; nostra bibat vernum contracta cuticula solem effugiatque togam. iam nunc in balnea salva fronte licet vadas, quamquam solida hora supersit 205 ad sextam. facere hoc non possis quinque diebus continuis, quia sunt talis quoque taedia vitae magna; voluptates commendat rarior usus.

187 *acito P vilem PS | 197 *urem P | 199 defecerit P| 202 acsedisse P| 203 vivat P| 205 quamque P| 208 ⋆arior P: parior S

NOTES

X

MEN pray for eloquence, strength, wealth, and thus invite their own ruin upon themselves (1-27). Well might Democritus and Heraclitus in this vanity of human wishes find matter, the one for laughter, the other for tears (28-53). For what may we pray (54-5)? Vaulting ambition o'erleaps itself: witness Seianus, Crassus, Pompeius, Caesar (56-113). The schoolboy envies the eloquence of Demosthenes and Cicero; yet it had been well for Cicero, if he had only been known as the meanest of poets: for Demosthenes, if he had never left his father's smithy (114-132). How passing is military glory, and how uncertain military power, appears in Hannibal and Xerxes; Alexander, for whom the world was all too strait, found rest at last in an urn (133-187). Length of days does but bring decay of body and mind. Peleus and Nestor, had they died early, would not have mourned the loss of Achilles and of Antilochus. Priam, Hecuba, Croesus, Mithridates, Marius, Pompeius were spared to their own hurt (188-288). Beauty is dangerous even to the chaste; example of Silius (289-345). Leave to the gods, who know what is best for you, to order your lot as they will: pray only for health of mind and body, that you may bravely bear the worst (346—365).

Cf. [Plat.] Alcib. II. Pers. II. VM. vII 2 E § 1. Sen. ep. 10 §§ 4-5. 32 §§ 4-5. 60 § 1. 118 §§ 4-9. Lucian. navig. 13 seq. id. Icaromen. 25. Max. Tyr. 11-30. Euseb. ap. Stob. flor. 1 85.

1-11 In every land, from furthest west to furthest east, few only can discern true blessings from their counterfeits, clear from all mist of error. For what do we with reason fear, covet with reason? what do you undertake with foot so right, with a start so lucky, but you rue your attempt and the success of your desire? Whole houses have fallen on their own petition, when indulgent gods have taken them at their word. In peace, in war, men crave what will only harm them; his flood of speech is often the orator's death-warrant; rash trust in his thews, the wonder of the world, made Milo a prey of wolves. VM. VII 2 ES (a passage which, as also Plat. Alc. II and Pers. II, Iuv.

had before him) 'mind of mortals, wrapt in thickest darkness [Iuv. 4 nebula], over how wide a field of error dost thou throw thy prayers broadcast: thou seekest wealth, which has been the destruction of many [12-27]: thou lustest after honours, which have ruined not a few [133-187]; thou broodest over dreams of sovereignty, whose issue is often seen to be pitiable [56—113]: thou graspest at splendid marriages [350-3]; but they, though sometimes they add glory to families, yet not seldom overthrow them utterly' [ funditus domos evertunt. cf. 7].

1 GADIBUS XI 162. Cadiz, beyond the pillars of Hercules (Herodot. IV 8 § 1), was the western boundary of the world, the ne plus ultra, to the ancients Pind. Nem. Iv 69 Tadelpwv TO Tрos jópoν où πeрaτóv. Anacreontic. XIII Bergk=XXXII 25-6 καὶ τοὺς Γαδείρων ἐκτὸς | τοὺς Βακτρίων τε κινδῶν [cf. here 2 Gan gen]. Strabo p. 38. Sil. I 141 hominum finem Gades. Stat. S. III I 183 solisque cubilia Gades. Sen. n. q. 1 pr. § 13 quantum enim est, quod ab ultimis litoribus Hispaniae usque ad Indos iacet? paucissimorum dierum spatium, si navem suus ferat ventus, implebit. Plin. II § 242 pars nostra terrarum ...longissime ab ortu ad occasum patet, hoc est ab India ad Herculis columnas Gadibus sacratas. SS 243-4 two measurements are given, each starting from the Ganges. He gives many other measurements always reckoning from Gades to the west, Ganges to the east (Sillig's ind.) and places Gades v § 76 extra orbem. Claud. names Gades as the furthest west IV cons. Hon. 43. bell. Gild. 159. in Eutr. I 353. Ambr. de Abraham II § 40 ab Indiae quoque litoribus ad Herculis, ut aiunt, columnas.

USQUE without ad before the names of towns usually, before other nouns in Plin. Stat. Iust.

2 AURORAM Ov. m. 161 Eurus ad Auroram Nabataeaque regna recessit.

GANGEN ib. IV 20-1 oriens tibi victus ad usque | decolor extremo qua tinguitur India Gange.

PAUCI 19. 112. 337. II 53 'only few.' XVI 24 duo. To limit pauci, unus, Cic. either uses modo (sometimes solus) or has no particle; Liv. and the writers of the silver age (e.g. Quintil. 1 12 § 2) often add tantum. Caes. b. c. II 43 § 3 horum fuga navium onerariarum magistros incitabat: pauci lenunculi ad officium imperiumque conveniebant.

DINOSCERE in other compounds the initial g of the second member is preserved, ignosco, cognosco etc. Pers. V 105, 107 veri speciem dinoscere calles |...quaeque sequenda forent, quaeque evitanda vicissim. Sen. ep. 45 §§ 6. 7 res fallunt: illas discerne. pro bonis mala amplectimur: optamus contra id, quod optavimus. pugnant vota nostra cum votis...adulatio quam similis

est amicitiae! doce quemadmodum hanc similitudinem possim dinoscere...vitia nobis sub virtutum nomine obrepunt.

3 ILLIS i.e. veris bonis dat. as in VFl. IV 157-8 diversaque regi corda gerens. So Hor. Vell. Luc. Curt. and Quintil. often. So the dat. is found with differre, distare, abhorrens.

ILLIS MULTUM DIVERSA i.e. mala. So recte an secus, recte secusne, bene an secus, τὰ καλὰ καὶ τὰ μή, τὰ χρηστὰ ἢ τὰ ἕτερα.

4 ERRORIS NEBULA from [Plat.] Alc. II 150de 'as Homer [E 127 seq. cf. P 643-9] says that Athena removed the mist [axλúv] from the eyes of Diomedes, that he might well distinguish a god and a man, so you too, as it seems to me, must first remove the mist from the soul, which is now upon it, and then apply the means whereby you are to distinguish the good and the bad.'

RATIONE on principle,' 'by reason's rule.' Plin. ep. 1x 7 § aedificare te scribis, bene est: inveni patrocinium; aedifico enim iam ratione quia tecum. Generally cum is prefixed to the abl. modi, when not accompanied by pron. or adj.; a few substantives however are used almost adverbially without cum, as vi, more, modo, iure, dolo, silentio Zumpt § 472 n. 1. Madvig $ 258 n. 2.

TIMEMUS AUT CUPIMUS Munro and Lachmann on Lucr. VI 25. Sen. ep. 123 § 13 debemus itaque exerceri ne haec [labour, death, pain, reproach, spare diet] timeamus, ne illa [riches, pleasures, beauty, ambition] cupiamus.

5 DEXTRO PEDE Petron. 30 'after we had been sated with these pleasures, as we were about to enter the dining-room, one of the slaves, appointed to the express function, cried out dextro pede.' Sil. vii 171—2_attulit hospitio...pes dexter et hora Lyaeum. Prudent. c. Symm. 11 79 feliciter et pede dextro. Vitruv. III 3 § 4 the steps to a temple should always be odd in number, that the worshipper may mount the first step dextro pede, and also enter the temple right foot foremost. Apul. met. 15 p. 27 'having set out left foot foremost (sinistro pede profectum), I was, as usual, disappointed.' The gods are entreated to come pede secundo (i. e. Serv. Aen. VIII 302 omine prospero) Aen. x 255. Aug. ep. 17=44 § 2 What does Namphanio [a Punic word] mean but a man of good foot, i.e. one who brings luck with him; as we commonly say that he has entered secundo pede, whose entrance has been followed by some prosperity?' Cf. Prop. III=IV 1 6 quove pede ingressi?

CONCIPIS plan. cf. conc. fraudes.

6 PERACTÍ VOTI in another sense Ov. Ibis 97 peragam rata vota sacerdos. Here 'accomplished,' as Stat. Th. x1 671 spes longa peracta est.

7 seq. 111. 346 seq. From [Plat.] Alc. 11 138b*. 141a many

call down ruin upon themselves, not wittingly, as Oedipus, but mistaking it for a blessing. 142ed. 143b Ignorance makes us pray for what is worst for us. Any one would think himself able to pray for the best for himself, not the worst; for that is more like a curse than a prayer.

EVERTERE DOMOS 108. cf. VM. above p. 24. Cic. p. Cael. § 28 nullius vitam labefactent, nullius domum evertant. 'The gods have overthrown,' they have been known to do so; e.g. Midas, Semele, Phaethon, Theseus (Eur. Hipp. 44 seq.).

OPTANTIBUS IPSIS abl. Sen, ep. 22 § 12 rise to a better life by the favour of the gods, but not as they favour those, on whom with good and kind look they have bestowed mala magnifica, ad hoc unum excusati, quod ista, quae urunt, quae excruciant, optantibus data sunt.

8 FACILES Compliant, gracious. Mart. 1 103 4 riserunt faciles et tribuere dei. cf. the whole epigr. Luc. 1 505—6 o faciles dare summa deos, eademque tueri | difficiles.

NOCITURA Sen. ep. 110 § 10 quidquid nobis bono futurum crat, deus et parens noster in proximo posuit...nocitura altissime pressit.

TOGA 'by the arts of peace,' in the forum and the senate VIII 240. Cic. in Pis. § 73 pacis est insigne et otii toga; by the words cedant arma togae, he meant bellum ac tumultum paci atque otio concessurum.

III 26.

9 TORRENS DICENDI COPIA 128 n. III 74. Quintil. III 8 § 60 torrens...dicentis oratio. Hence Auson. prof. I 17 dicendi torrens tibi copia. The repetition in torrens dicendi copia and facundia is characteristic of Iuv. 11 80. 102. 135-6. 287. IV 152. VI 25. 139. 200. 237. 268. 286. 311. 359. 493. 658. VII 3. 48-9. 53-5. 84-5. VIII 50. 71-2. 80-1. IX 43. 71-2. 106. X 29 30. 88-9. 104-5. 112 XIII 28. 189-90. 240. XIV 16-7. 31. 42. XV 26. 79. 129-30. XVI 35.

3. 188. 348. 56. 188. 281-2.

10 MORTIFERA 114-132.

ILLE 171 n. the Pythagorean Milo of Croton, 'wedged in the timber which he strove to rend,' and there eaten by wolves schol. h. 1. VM. IX 12 E§ 9. He lived at the time of the Persian war (Hdt. III 137 § 4) and his Olympian victories first were celebrated by Simonides (anth. Plan, III 24, II p. 631 Jacobs). He led (A.D. 510) the army of Croton against thrice the number of Sybarites, wearing it is said, his Olympic crowns, and equipped in the fashion of Herakles with a lion's skin and club' (DŜ. XII 9 §§ 5, 6). Ov. Ibis 609, 610 utque Milon, robur diducere fissile temptes, nec possis captas inde referre manus.

11 VIRIBUS CONFISUS VM. 1. c. fretus viribus accessit ad cam [the oak which he saw in a field split with wedges] insertisque