Book 1 — EPISTLES.—BOOK I. (continued 2)

The foreign purples (enumerated on C. ii. 16. 36) were most esteemed, and these were imitated by the Italians (see Epp. ii. 1. 207). The ‘fucus’ was a marine plant of some kind, which yielded a red juice used for coloring. It was commonly used in imitation of the real dye. Hence it came to be used for deception in general. Aquinum (Aquino) the birth-place of Juvenal, was a large town of Latium on the Via Latina, between Fregellae and Venafrum.

31. Si quid mirabere] This maxim is consistent with the advice to Numicius, Epp. 6. 1.

34. Cervus equum pugna melior] Stesichorus is said to have spoken this fable to the citizens of Himera, when they were preparing to confer absolute power on Phalaris, and give him a body-guard. The fable is told by Phædrus (iv. 4), with the substitution of a boar for the stag.

37. Sed postquam victor violens] ‘Violens’ expresses the struggle with which the horse won his victory and his servitude.

39. potiore metallis] The ‘vectigalia’ from mines (‘metalla’) were very considerable at this time. The principal mines were the gold of Aquileia and Ictimuli in the Alps, and the silver of Spain.

42. ut calceus olim,] See S. i. 3. 31, n. ‘Olim’ is used quite indefinitely, as in S. i. 1. 25, “ut pueris olim dant crustula blandi Doctores.” See C. ii. 10. 17, n.

48. Tortum digna sequi] The metaphor is taken from a prisoner, led with a rope round his neck by his captor.

49. Haec tibi dictabam] The imperfect tense is generally used in letters, instead of the present, because the action is past to the person receiving the letter. As to ‘dictabam,’ see S. i. 10. 92, n. The Fanum Vacunae was about three miles from the confluence of the Digentia and the Anio, close to the modern town Rocca Giovane. Vacuna was originally a Sabine goddess, and seems to have been identical with Victoria.

EPISTLE XI.

This Epistle is addressed to one Bullatius, of whom we know nothing at all. He was travelling in the Ægean and in Asia Minor, and was absent longer than Horace wished, or thought good for him; and the object of this letter is to induce him to return.

1. Quid tibi visa Chios,] The island of Chios was rugged and mountainous, but had, as it still has, an excellent climate and choice wines; its women also were very handsome: in all of which particulars ancient and modern accounts agree. Its principal town, Chios, was a noble city, richly adorned with buildings and works of art. Not a trace of anything remains.

notaque Lesbos,] From the Trojan war to the times of the Roman Empire, when Tacitus calls it “insula nobilis et amoena” (Ann. vi. 3), the fortunes of Lesbos, its revolutions and conquests, its connection with Athens, its tradition of Orpheus, its poets and musicians and statesmen, its cities and works of art, its fields and vineyards and climate, all contributed to make it the most conspicuous island in the Ægean.

2. concinna Samos,] Samos (the island) is rough, but the town is meant, and it is called ‘concinna’ from its buildings, of which a temple of Juno was one of the most conspicuous. Outside and inside, this temple was adorned with the finest works of art. There was also a celebrated mole at Samos, made to protect the harbor, which would be an object of interest to a traveller.

2. Croesi regia Sardes,] The town of Sardes (αἱ Σάρδεις), or the greater part of it, which was burnt to the ground in the revolt of the Ionians, B. C. 499, was originally built of slight materials, though it was the seat of enormous wealth during the reigns of the Lydian kings, and especially that of Crœsus, whose palace became the residence of the Persian Satraps and was beautified by them, especially by Cyrus the younger, whose gardens are celebrated (Cic. de Senect. c. 17).

3. Smyrna quid et Colophon?] Alexander the Great found Smyrna in ruins, and conceived the design of rebuilding it, being prompted by Nemesis in a dream. He did not live to do so, but Antigonus began and Lysimachus finished a new town on a magnificent scale. Strabo speaks of it as one of the most beautiful cities of Ionia. Among other objects of interest was a temple erected to Homer, and called Homerium. The inhabitants claimed him as their countryman, and showed a cave in which it was said he wrote his poems.

Colophon, also in Ionia, on the Hales, was destroyed by Lysimachus, with Lebedus (v. 6). Its chief attraction was its neighborhood to the shrine of the Clarian Apollo. At present, only a few huts stand on the site of this town.

Majora minorave fama,] ‘Be they greater or less than report makes them out to be (I care not which), are they not all tame compared with the Campus Martius and the Tiber?’ ‘Ve’ is probably formed from ‘vel,’ and had much the same meaning, being chiefly used in poetry. When ‘vel’ is used, an indifference in the speaker’s mind is implied as to which of the two cases or objects be taken. ‘Ne,’ being attached to ‘cuncta,’ shows that the emphasis lies on that word.

5. Attalicis ex urbibus] One of the towns of the kingdom of Pergamum, bequeathed by Attalus III. to the Roman people, and constituted a Roman province on the defeat of Aristonicus, B. C. 129. The kingdom of Pergamum, when it was handed over to the Romans, included Mysia, Lydia, Ionia, and part of Caria, the principal cities of which (μητροπόλεις) were Ephesus, Pergamum, Sardes, Smyrna, Lampsacus, Cyzicus. Other large towns were Tralles, Adramyttium, Thyatira, &c., nearly all of which are shown, by the ruins that remain, to have been built and ornamented on a magnificent scale.

6. An Lebedum laudas] Lysimachus, after the battle of Ipsus (B. C. 301), when he became master of the western part of Asia Minor, destroyed the towns of Lebedus and Colophon in Ionia, and transferred their inhabitants to Ephesus. Lebedus never seems to have been rebuilt so as to recover any of its former importance, and the ruins of the old town probably helped to cause the desolate appearance described by Horace. He writes as if he knew Lebedus, but did not know the other places he refers to before. He must have seen this place, if at all, in his campaigning with Brutus.

7. Gabiis desertior] Gabii was an ancient town of Latium, an Alban colony, 100 stadia from Rome. Juvenal mentions it as a place of resort for people in humble circumstances, and calls it “Simplicibus Gabiis?” (iii. 190). In Horace’s time, while cold bathing was the fashion under the advice of Antonius Musa, it appears Gabii was resorted to. Horace may have been there himself. See Epp. 15. 9.

8. Fidenis] Fidenæ was about five miles from Rome, in the Sabine territory, and remains of it are still in existence near Castel Giubileo. In B. C. 425 the town was destroyed by Æmilius Mamercus (Liv. iv. 9), and it seems never to have risen to any great importance again.

Gabii and Fidenæ were proverbially joined together (see Juv. S. x. 99). Virgil mentions them together as colonies of Alba (Aen. vi. 773):—

“Hi tibi Nomentum, et Gabios urbemque Fidenam, Hi Collatinas imponent montibus arces”;

where, it may be observed, Virgil shortens the first syllable, whereas Horace and Juvenal and Silius (xv. 91) make it long.

tamen illic vivere vellem,] Horace seems to mean that, though Lebedus was a place deserted, he could enjoy living there, though it cut him off from all his friends, for the sake of the fine prospect it gave of the sea, which would be an exaggerated way of speaking. He had probably in mind some occasion when he had admired the sea from Lebedus, and the recollection came upon him strongly as he wrote; or Bullatius may have said something in a letter about the fine prospect, and Horace means that he agrees with him. ‘But,’ he goes on to say, ‘there is a time for all things. The traveller, when he gets splashed, may be glad of a tavern to retire to and clean himself, but he would not wish to stay there all his life; and the man who has got chilled may be glad of a fire or hot bath, but he does not reckon fires and hot baths the chief good of life; and though you may have been glad to get on shore in a foreign land, to escape from a storm, you will surely not think it necessary to stay there for ever. If a man is in health, Rhodes and Mytilene are not the places for him; so come back again while you may and if you must praise those distant parts, praise them at home.’ (vv. 11-21.) It appears as if Bullatius had been a good while absent, and meant to remain much longer.

11. qui Capua Romam] The road Appius made (B. C. 312) extended only as far as Capua. It was afterwards extended to Beneventum, and then on by two different branches to Brundisium (see S. i. 5. 79, n.).

12. nec qui Frigus collegit] ‘Colligere’ is not used in this sense elsewhere. The meaning is, he who has got chilled. ‘Furnos’ may be bakers’ ovens, or any furnaces to which a man might go to warm himself.

17. Incolumi] See S. ii. 3. 137, n.

18. Paenula solstitio, campestre] The ‘paenula’ was a thick outer mantle worn in bad weather over the toga. The ‘campestre’ was a linen cloth worn round the loins, in games or exercises in which the body was otherwise stripped, as also in swimming.

19. caminus.] See Epod. ii. 43, n.

23. in annum,] See Epp. i. 2. 38.

26. effusi late maris arbiter] That is, a place which commands (as we say) a wide prospect over the sea, such as Lebedus was described to be above. The south wind is called ‘arbiter Hadriae’ in a different sense in C. i. 3. 15.

28. Strenua nos exercet inertia:] This is a very happy expression, and has become proverbial for a do-nothing activity, such exertions as tend to no point and produce no fruits. ‘Navibus atque quadrigis’ means ‘running about by sea and land.’ ‘Quadriga’ is any carriage drawn by four horses (abreast, two under the yoke attached to the pole, and two outside, ‘funales,’ fastened by traces), though the word is more generally used for a triumphal or racing chariot than for a travelling carriage, of which there were various kinds. ‘Rheda’ was the most general name for such a carriage on four wheels (see S. ii. 6. 42, n.). ‘Petorritum’ was another name, and a third was ‘carruca,’ a later name, not known in Horace’s time. There were others, each differing more or less from the rest: ‘cisium,’ ‘essedum,’ ‘carpentum,’ ‘pilentum,’ ‘covinus.’

30. Est Ulubris,] All that we know of Ulubræ is that it was a small town of Latium, not far from Velitræ, and that it was a place of no importance.

EPISTLE XII.

Iccius, to whom this Epistle is addressed, has been mentioned, with all that is known of him, in the Introduction to C. i. 29, and Pompeius Grosphus in C. ii. 16. It is a letter of introduction for Grosphus to Iccius, who was employed in managing Agrippa’s estates in Sicily. The Epistle begins with some general remarks on the position and circumstances of Iccius, exhorting him to contentment, and commending his pursuit of philosophy in the midst of common employments. It then passes on to the recommendation of Grosphus, and finishes with one or two items of public news.

1. Fructibus Agrippae] From what sources Agrippa derived his immense wealth we do not know. From this Epistle we learn that he had estates in Sicily, probably given him after his successes against Sextus Pompeius. Horace means to say to Iccius, that he has got a good post, and may be very comfortable if he is careful. He probably got a percentage on what he collected. He collected Agrippa’s rents, ‘fructus’.

4. cui rerum suppetit usus] ‘Rerum usus’ here seems to mean the supply of things needful. ‘Suppeto,’ meaning ‘to be sufficient,’ occurs in Epod. xvii. 64. ‘Pauper’ is here used more in the sense of privation than Horace generally uses it.

7. positorum] ‘Ponere’ is the usual word for putting dishes on the table, as observed on S. ii. 2. 23. Here fine dishes are meant, as we can tell by the context. The nettle, ‘urtica,’ forms an ingredient in the broth of poor people in this country, and still more in Scotland. ‘Protinus’ means ‘right on,’ and is applied in various ways. Here it means ‘in an uninterrupted course,’ that is, ‘always’. ‘Ut’ means ‘even supposing,’ as in Epod. i. 21. ‘Confestim,’ ‘straightway,’ has the same root as ‘festino.’ ‘Fortunae rivus’ seems, as Orelli says, to have been a proverbial expression.

10. naturam mutare] Horace says the same in a different application elsewhere (Epod. iv. 5):

“Licet superbus ambules pecunia, Fortuna non mutat genus.”

12. Miramur si Democriti] “I am surprised that Democritus should have allowed his sheep to eat the corn off his fields, while his mind was wandering in swift flight far away, leaving his body; and yet you, in the midst of such sordid work and the infection of money, are bent on wisdom, and that of no mean sort, and continue to study things sublime.” Democritus of Abdera had a considerable patrimony, which he neglected for travel and study. It seems his name had passed into a proverb.

20. Empedocles an Stertinium] Empedocles was born about B. C. 520, and was a man of wealth and station at Agrigentum in Sicily. He was a philosopher, but his opinions are hard to trace. He pretended to a divine nature. (See A. P. 463, sqq.) His poems, of which fragments are extant, were much read and admired by the Romans. Horace refers perhaps to a dogma imputed to Empedocles, to which Cicero alludes (De Amic. vii.) when he says “Agrigentinum quidem doctum quendam virum carminibus Graecis vaticinatum ferunt, quae in rerum natura totoque mundo constarent quaeque moverentur, ea contrahere amicitiam, dissipare discordiam.”

Stertinius, of whom all that is known has been told in the Introduction to S. ii. 3, is put again as the representative of the Stoics. ‘Stertinium’ is an adjective formed like ‘Sulpiciis’ in C. iv. 12. 18. ‘Stertinium acumen’ is an expression like ‘sententia Catonis’ and others (see ii. 1. 72, n.). ‘Deliret’ is used, perhaps, by way of jocular allusion to the Stoic theory noticed in S. ii. 3.

21. Verum seu pisces] This is only a way of changing the subject, and passing from Iccius and his habits to that which was the chief purpose of the Epistle, the introduction of Grosphus. Murdering leeks and onions is a humorous way of alluding to the notion of Pythagoras mentioned in S. ii. 6. 63, and the same is extended to fishes perhaps, because Empedocles, who believed in the metempsychosis and held that to take life was against the universal law, declared that he himself had once been a fish, among other things.

23. verum] See Epp. 7. 98.

24. Vilis amicorum est annona] Horace means to say, that good friends are cheaply bought, because they do not ask more than is right; they are reasonable and modest in their demands, as Grosphus would be.

26. Cantaber Agrippae] See C. ii. 6. 2, n.

27. Armenius cecidit;] This is an exaggerated way of stating the case. He refers to the completion of the mission of Tiberius, mentioned in the Introduction to Ep. 3. At their own request, Augustus sent Tigranes to the Armenians, he having been for some time living in exile at Rome. They put the reigning king, Artaxias, to death and received Tigranes, because they had chosen to have him for their king. Nevertheless, a coin was struck for the occasion with the inscription Armenia capta.

— jus imperiumque Phraates] What Horace says is, that Phraates, king of the Parthians, accepted or put himself under the law and ‘imperium’ of Augustus, prostrating himself at his knees (‘genibus minor’),—a ridiculous exaggeration. (See Int. to C. iii. 5.) Ovid is nearly as strong (Trist. ii. 227):

“Nunc petit Armenius pacem; nunc porrigit arcus Parthus eques timida captaque signa manu.”

29. Copia cornu.] See C. S. 60, n., and compare the expressions in C. iv. 5. 17, sqq., and 15. 4, sq.

EPISTLE XIII.

This letter professes to be written by Horace to one Vinius Asella, the bearer of certain volumes of his to Augustus at Rome, Horace being probably at his own estate. He writes as if he had given his friend particular and anxious instructions when he started, as to how he was to behave, and as if this was to be sent after him, to overtake him on the road in order to impress those instructions upon his memory. It is probable that some such jokes may have passed between Horace and his messenger when he started, and that he amused himself afterwards by putting them into the form of this Epistle. The person is assumed to be ignorant of the world, and therefore liable to make mistakes in the execution of his mission, to intrude at an unseasonable time; in the eagerness of his affection for Horace to be too officious, to carry the books awkwardly, so as to draw attention or to stop in the streets in order to tell his curious friends what important business he was upon. The person addressed is called Vinius, and the allusion in v. 8 leads to the inference that his cognomen was Asellus, or Asina, or Asella, which belonged to different Roman families.

What the volumes were that Horace was sending to Augustus, it is impossible to say for certain.

2. signata volumina,] The number of volumes would depend upon the number of books into which the work was divided, as each book, if it was not very long, would be rolled on one stick. (See Epod. 14. 8, n.) Round each would be wrapped a piece of parchment, and to this Horace’s seal would be affixed.

3. Si validus,] Augustus had very uncertain health.

6. chartae,] See S. ii. 3. 2, n.

9. fabula fias.] Compare Epod. xi. 8: “fabula quanta fui.”

10. lamas;] This is a rare word, signifying bogs. Horace writes as if the man was going some arduous journey over hills and rivers and bogs, whereas he had but thirty miles, or thereabouts, to go, along a good road, the Via Valeria, which passed very near the valley of the Digentia.

14. glomus furtivae Pyrrhia lanae,] Pyrrhia is said to be the name of a slave in a play of Titinius, who stole some wool, and carried it away so clumsily that she was detected. Titinius was a writer of comedies who lived before Terence. Pyrrhia is formed from Pyrrha, the name of a town in Lesbos, like Lesbia, Delia, &c. ‘Glomus’ is the singular number and neuter gender. It means a clew or ball of wool.

15. Ut cum pileolo soleas] The notion here is of a person of humble station invited to the table of a great man of his own tribe, who perhaps wanted his vote and influence. Having no slave to carry them for him, as was usual, he comes with his cap and slippers under his arm in an awkward manner, not being accustomed to the ways of fine houses. ‘Pileus’ was a skull-cap, made of felt, and worn at night or in bad weather. The man would bring it with him, to wear on his way home from the dinner-party. The ‘solea’ was the slipper, worn in the house, as ‘calceus’ was the walking shoe. (See S. i. 3. 127, n.)

16. Ne vulgo narres] “Don’t tell it to all the town, that you are the bearer of poems from Horace to Augustus; and though they should stop you, and entreat you to tell them your business, press on.” Horace, by way of keeping up the joke, supposes his messenger to arrive, hot from his journey, and to be besieged by inquisitive people, wanting to know what brings him to Rome.

19. cave ne titubes] This is perhaps another jocular allusion to his name, and, as an ass stumbling might chance to break what he was carrying, he adds, ‘mandataque frangas.’ In plain prose it means, ‘Take care you make no mistake, nor neglect to deliver your charge.’

EPISTLE XIV.

Horace appears to have had a discontented ‘villicus,’ or steward of his property, whom he had promoted to that post from having been originally one of the lower sort of slaves in the town establishment. While in that position, he sighed for what he thought must be the superior freedom of the country; but as soon as he had reached the highest place he could be trusted with on the farm, he began to regret the former days when he could get access to the tavern and cook-shop, forgetting, as is common, the vexations that had made him long for deliverance before. This man’s discontent suggested to Horace this Epistle. It is such only in form, for we are not to suppose it was ever sent to the villicus. Horace means to describe his own feelings in respect to the country, and the change in his habits and character, and at the same time to draw a moral from his slave’s conduct as to the temper of those who never know what they want, who are envious, discontented, and lazy.

1. Villice silvarum] The ‘villicus’ was one of the principal slaves in the ‘familia rustica,’ who had the superintendence of a man’s farm and ‘villa rustica.’ He collected his rents, looked after his slaves, and had charge of everything but the cattle, of which there was a separate superintendent. Horace says his woods and fields restored him to himself; that is, they gave him liberty and enjoyment of life.

2. habitatum quinque focis] ‘Focis’ is put for ‘families.’ Horace says there lived on his estate five families, the heads of which were good men, who went up from time to time to the neighbouring town of Varia. Some suppose they were ‘coloni’ (C. ii. 14. 11, n.), lessees who farmed different parts of the estate. Varia was thirty miles from Rome, and ten from Tibur, on the Via Valeria. It was four miles from Horace’s farm. Its modern name is Vico Varo.

5. an res.] His land. ‘Praedia’ were ‘res mancipi.’

6. Lamiae] See Introd. to C. iii. 17. ‘Insolabiliter’ occurs nowhere else.

9. rumpere claustra.] At the end of the Circus were stalls (‘carceres’), in which the chariots remained till the race was ready to begin. They were then brought out, and ranged side by side behind a rope called ‘alba linea’ or ‘calx,’ which was stretched across the course, and formed a barrier, beyond which the chariots could not advance till the signal was given and the rope withdrawn. It is from this obstruction, or from the ‘carceres,’ that the metaphor in the text is taken.

13. se non effugit unquam.] Compare C. ii. 16. 19.

14. Tu mediastinus] He had been one of the lowest slaves, used for all manner of work in the ‘familia urbana,’ and by his pitiful countenance (for he was afraid perhaps to speak) had shown how much he wished to be delivered from that condition, and to be sent to work on the farm, though that was generally considered to be the greatest punishment (see S. ii. 7. 118, n.). When there, he had risen, it may be supposed, to be villicus. ‘Mediastinus’ was the name for the lowest sort of slave, both in the town and country establishment. It is derived from ‘medius,’ from his standing in the midst, and being at every one’s call.

tacita prece] See Epp. i. 16. 59, n.

18. eo disconvenit] ‘To this comes the difference between me and you.’

19. tesca] ‘Tesca’ means any rough wilderness. It is a rare word.

21. uncta popina] As to ‘popina’ (which Horace calls ‘uncta,’ because of the greasy viands cooked there), see S. ii. 4. 62, n.

23. Angulus iste feret] Horace writes as if he were repeating the contemptuous language of the villicus. ‘That little nook of yours would produce pepper and frankincense (which of course was impossible) sooner than grapes.’ The grapes grown on the farm he did not think worthy of the name. That Horace made his own wine and that it was not too bad to put before Mæcenas, we know from C. i. 20. Pepper the ancients must have obtained, through some channel, from India. ‘Thus’ or ‘tus olibanum,’ which is a gum resin, extracted from a tree called now the Boswellia Thurifera, was brought chiefly from Arabia. See Virgil (Georg. i. 57): “India mittit ebur, molles sua tura Sabaei.”

25. meretrix tibicina,] The ‘tibia’ was played by women as well as men, and chiefly by women at meals.

26. et tamen urges] This is said with a sort of mock compassion: ‘And yet, poor man! (though you have none of these comforts to help you on your way,) you have to go on turning up the rough soil, feeding the oxen, looking out for floods, and all that.’ ‘Jampridem non tacta’ implies that Horace’s property had been neglected before it came into his possession. Mæcenas had probably never resided there, and perhaps he had not been long owner of it when he gave it to Horace. One of the duties the ‘villicus’ had to attend to, was looking to the banks of the river (Digentia), which it was apt to burst or overflow when the rains came down heavily. Horace has ‘docere’ again in this connection (A. P. 67).

31. quid nostrum concentum dividat] ‘What disturbs our harmony,’ or prevents us from agreeing in opinion; which is, that whereas I can look back upon my past enjoyments with pleasure, and am glad to quit them, now that my time of life requires it, to retire to the country, where I am free from jealousies and vexations, you are longing to get back to your former life and give up the country, which many a poor slave in the town envies you. So the ox envies the horse, and the horse envies the ox, but my judgment is, that each should do the work he is best fitted for (31-fin.).

32. tenues decuere togae] The toga was generally made of a thick woollen cloth, but there were lighter and finer sorts for summer. These were called ‘rasae,’ because the nap was clipped close. ‘Nitidi capilli’ refers to the anointing of the head at meals. See C. ii. 7. 23, n.

33. immunem Cinarae] Though Cinara loved money, and he had none to give, yet she was fond of him. As to this woman, see C. iv. 1. 3, n.

34. media de luce] ‘Soon after noon’ (see S. ii. 8. 3, n.). It need not be taken too literally. Then drinking was not uncommonly carried on from three or four o’clock till past midnight, but with idle people, or on particular occasions, it began earlier. ‘Bibulum’ depends upon ‘scis.’ As to Falerni, see C. i. 20. 10, n.

36. sed non incidere ludum.] ‘I am not ashamed to amuse myself sometimes, but I am ashamed never to break off or interrupt my amusements.’ He liked relaxation, but thought it shame to be always idle.

40. urbana diaria] See S. i. 5. 69.

42. calo argutus] The word ‘calo’ was applied to the menial slaves in general, though it is not a generic title for such, like ‘mediastinus’ (v. 14). See S. i. 6. 103, n. The meaning of ‘argutus’ here is doubtful. It may mean ‘sharp,’ or it may mean ‘noisy.’

43. ephippia] ‘Ephippium’ was a saddle, which the Romans appear to have used, having copied it from the Greeks. It did not differ materially from ours, except that it had no stirrups. A saddle cloth was worn under it, sometimes highly ornamented.

EPISTLE XV.

Nothing is known of the person to whom this Epistle was written. He is called, in the MSS. inscriptions, C. Numonius Vala. It appears that he was acquainted with the southern coast of Italy, and Horace, who had been recommended by his physician no longer to go (as he had been wont) to Baiæ, had a mind to try one of the southern ports; and he writes to Vala for information about them. It is an unconnected sort of Epistle, with a long digression upon the lament of Baiæ at the loss of her invalids, and another upon wines, and a third, which occupies half the Epistle, upon the profligacy of one Mænius, who squandered all his money on good living, and then turned to living at the expense of others. When he had nothing better, he ate tripe, and abused all spendthrifts; and as soon as he had got any money, he spent it in the same way again. Such am I, says Horace; when I am short of money, I commend the serenity of a humble life; when a windfall drops in, I am ready to be as extravagant as you please.

All this has not much connection with the professed object of the letter.

1. Quae sit hiems Veliae,] Velia or Elea, famous as the residence of Xenophanes, the founder of the Eleatic school of philosophy, and the birthplace of Parmenides and Zeno, was a town of Lucania, near the mouth of the river Heles or Elees (Alento). Salernum in Campania was situated at the head of the bay of Pæstum, now the gulf of Salerno, on the heights above the modern town, which is close to the sea. These places were not very much frequented, it would seem, at this time, but a new doctor was bringing them into fashion.

2. qualis via,] Salernum was situated on a very good road, the Via Aquilia, of which there was a branch from Picenum as far as Pæstum. Thence to Velia, about twenty miles, there was no Roman road.

Baias] The atmosphere of Baiæ appears to have been clear, and the place attractive. (Horace calls it ‘liquidae,’ C. iii. 4. 24, and ‘amoenae,’ Epp. i. 1. 83.) This made it the most favourite resort of wealthy Romans. To invalids there was the additional attraction of hot sulphurous springs. Horace had been in the habit of going to Baiæ, as we may infer from his connecting it with the Sabine hills, Præneste, and Tibur, in C. iii. 4; but it appears he was now advised to try a different treatment, and seek some other climate. ‘Supervacuus’ means ‘useless’; the place would do him no good. As to the form of the word, see C. ii. 20. 24.

3. Musa — Antonius] This physician was a freedman of Augustus, and came into notice chiefly through curing him of a bad illness he contracted in the Cantabrian expedition. Having found cold bathing successful with the emperor, Musa appears to have made that his general principle of treatment. At any rate, he recommended it to Horace, and he followed his advice, not without reluctance, as it would seem from this Epistle. The death of Marcellus may have contributed to making Baiæ unpopular for a time, but it soon recovered its character (see above, Epp. 1. 83). There are some fragments of medical works by Musa still extant, and he is frequently referred to as an authority by Galen. The order of the names is inverted, as in C. ii. 2. 3; 11. 2.

et tamen illis Me facit invisum,] The sentence is this: “Antonius Musa makes out that Baiæ is useless for me, and yet he makes Baiæ hate me, because I am drenching myself with cold water in the middle of winter.” Horace goes on to say that the town is angry with all the patients for deserting it.

5. Sane murteta relinqui] ‘Murteta’ means groves in which houses were erected over sulphur springs for vapour baths.

8. Qui caput et stomachum] A douche bath on the head or stomach would now be thought a strong remedy even by hydropathists; but it is one of those which ancient physicians recommended.

9. Clusinis Gabiosque] Clusium (Chiusi) was one of the chief towns of Etruria, the capital of Porsenna, and the place where the Gauls received that insult which led to their siege of Rome (Liv. v. 33). It was situated on the Via Cassia, about one hundred miles north of Rome. Strabo (v. 3) mentions several cold streams at this place, called τὰ Ἄλβουλα, which were useful in many complaints both for bathing and drinking.

10. deversoria] See S. i. 5. 2, n. There was a branch of the Via Appia at Sinuessa, leading to Cumæ, called the Via Domitiana; but that, as the name shows, was not constructed at this time, and probably the traveller would have to continue along the Via Appia till he came to Capua, from whence the Via Campana went to Cumæ to the right, and the Via Aquilia went straight on to Salernum, and the Appia branched off through Caudium to Beneventum. (See S. i. 5. 50. 71.) This explains ‘laeva habena.’ The horse would turn to the right as usual to go to Cumæ (whence the road was continued to the Lucrine Lake and to Bauli and Baiæ, about four or five miles from Cumæ).

16. vina nihil moror illius orae;] The nearest place to Salernum spoken of as growing wines is Surrentum (Sorrento), at the end of the promontory that bears its name, and forms the southern boundary of the bay of Naples. This wine is mentioned in S. ii. 4. 55. Horace had no high opinion of it. He did not think it worth while to ask about the wine, which he knew was bad.

17. perferre patique,] This pleonasm occurs again in the next Satire, v. 74. It serves to make up a verse.

21. Lucanae] This supposes he was going to Velia.

24. Phaeaxque reverti,] See Epp. i. 2. 28.

26. Maenius,] See S. i. 1. 101, n. ‘Fortiter’ is used ironically. ‘Urbanus’ means ‘witty.’ ‘Scurra vagus’ means a parasite who was ready to dine anywhere, paying for his dinner with his jokes.

31. Pernicies et tempestas barathrumque] All these words belong to ‘macelli,’ as to which see S. ii. 3. 229, n. He was a plague that wasted, a tempest that swept, a gulf that swallowed up, the whole contents of the market.

37. corrector Bestius.] The meaning is, that Mænius, whenever he could not get a good dinner from one of those who patronized or were afraid of him, would dine prodigiously off tripe and coarse mutton, and then declare all good livers ought to be branded on the belly: a censor as strict as Bestius, who was, no doubt, some person well known at the time, perhaps as a spare liver or reprover of profligate living, though nothing is known of him now. ‘Corrector’ is here used for a reformer of morals, as in Epp. ii. 1. 129 it is applied to poets.

39. Verterat in fumum et cinerem,] This was evidently an ordinary way of speaking. He got rid of all the plunder he made from fools who patronized him.

41. Nil melius turdo, nil vulva] As to ‘turdus,’ see S. ii. 5. 10, n. The womb and breast (‘sumen’) of a sow, especially after her first litter, were considered great delicacies.

42. Nimirum hic ego sum;] Compare Epp. 6. 40: “ne fueris hic tu.” ἐνταῦθ᾽ εἰμί is a common expression with the Tragedians. ‘Nimirum,’ ‘of course, as is natural: how could anything better be expected of me?’ (See Epp. 9. 1.) He means to say, that of course, like his neighbours, he professes love for poverty while he is poor, but as soon as he gets any money he is ready for any extravagance.

46. nitidis fundata pecunia villis.] ‘Villa’ was a country house, as opposed to ‘aedes,’ a town house. There were ‘villae rusticae,’ farm-houses, and ‘villae urbanae,’ houses in the neighbourhood of towns (to which sense we limit the word in our use of it) or in the country, but built in many respects after the fashion of town houses. The ‘urbanae villae’ were often built at great expense, with much marble about them, which is referred to in ‘nitidis.’ ‘Fundata’ means ‘invested.’ It is not so used elsewhere.

EPISTLE XVI.

Quintius, to whom this Epistle is addressed, cannot be identified with any known person. The same name is connected with the eleventh Ode of the second Book; but there is no reason to suppose them to belong to one person. There is no more reason in the Epistle than in the Ode why a name should appear at all; for the subject is general, being the liability of men to be deceived in respect to their own goodness and that of others by the judgment of the multitude. This discourse is appended, rather abruptly, to a short description of Horace’s residence, in anticipation of the inquiries he supposes Quintius might make on that subject.

1. fundus] See S. ii. 5. 108, n.

2. Arvo pascat herum] Horace had some of his land under his own cultivation; but it was no great quantity, as we may infer from the number of slaves employed upon it (S. ii. 7. 118). The rest he seems to have let (Epp. 14. 2, n.). Part of his land was arable, and part of it meadow (Epp. 15. 26-30, and C. iii. 16. 30, “segetis certa fides meae”). He had a garden (Epp. 14. 42). He must also have had vines (23, n.). In short, it was an ordinary farm on a small scale. In the second and third verses Horace recounts the different productions of his farm, while he supposes Quintius to ask about them.

2. opulentet] This is a rare word, and does not occur in any earlier writer.

3. an amicta vitibus ulmo,] See C. ii. 15. 5: “platanusque caelebs Evincet ulmos.”

5. Continui montes] The valley of the Licenza is the only valley which cuts the range of mountains extending from the Campagna above Tibur to Carseoli, about forty-five miles from Rome. Without this valley this immense body would be a continuous mass. It lies nearly north and south, which corresponds with the description of the text. See C. i. 17. 1, n.

8. Temperiem laudes.] The position of the valley keeps it cool in summer and warm in winter, the latter by the exclusion of the north wind (Tramontana). The Scirocco (‘plumbeus Auster’) is modified in its strength and character as it penetrates the mountains.

Quid, si rubicunda] ‘Why, if I tell you that my thorns bear abundantly the red cornel and the plum, that my oaks and my ilexes delight my pigs with plenty of acorns, and their master with plenty of shade, you may say it is the woods of Tarentum, brought nearer to Rome.’ ‘Fruge’ is nowhere else used for acorns, the common food for pigs.

12. Fons etiam] There are two small streams which feed the Licenza in this valley, which that river nearly bisects. Either of these rivulets may be the one Horace alludes to.

14. fluit utilis,] See note on v. 8 of the last Epistle.

15. dulces, etiam si credis amoenae,] A place may be ‘dulcis’ from association or other causes: it can only be ‘amoenus’ from its climate, its beauties, and so forth. As to ‘Septembribus horis,’ see S. ii. 6. 18, n., and for ‘audis’ see note on v. 20 of the same Satire.

17. Tu recte vivis] He goes on to compliment and advise his friend: ‘Your life is what it should be, if you are careful to be what you are accounted. For all Rome has long spoken of you as a happy man. But I am afraid lest you should trust the judgment of others about you, rather than your own.’

24. pudor malus] See S. ii. 3. 39, n. He says it is a false shame that would induce a patient to conceal his sores from the physician; and so it is for a man to hide his defects, rather than bring them to the wise to cure.

25. Si quis bella tibi] ‘Tibi’ depends on ‘pugnata,’ which is joined with ‘bella’ in C. iii. 19. 4. See note on C. ii. 6. 11. Quintius had no doubt seen service; but, says Horace, if any one were to speak of your campaigning in such language as this (then he quotes two lines, said to be taken from the panegyric of Varius on Augustus, referred to on C. i. 6. 11), you would recognize it as meant, not for you, but for Cæsar. But if you allow yourself to be called wise and correct, does your life correspond to that name any more than your military exploits to the above encomium? Literally, ‘Do you answer in your own name,’ or ‘on your own account?’ ‘Vacuas aures’ are ears which, being unoccupied, are ready to receive what is spoken.

27. Tene magis — populum] ‘Whether thy people care for thy safety more, or thou for theirs, may Jove ever doubtful keep, he who watches over both thee and Rome.’ The meaning of this is, ‘May thy country ever care for thee, and thou for thy country, with an equal affection.’

30. Cum pateris sapiens] See C. i. 2. 43, n.

31. Nempe Vir bonus] Quintius is supposed to answer, ‘Yes, surely, I like to be called good and wise, and so do you.’ ‘Nay,’ replies Horace, ‘such praise as this is given one day, and may be withdrawn the next; and you are obliged to resign your claim, because you know you do not deserve it. But if a man attacks me with charges I know I am innocent of, is that to affect me and make me blush?’

40. Vir bonus est quis?] The answer is to this effect: “In the eyes of the people the good man is he who never transgresses the laws; who is seen acting as ‘judex’ in important causes, and has never been known to be corrupt; whom men choose as their sponsor, and whose testimony carries weight in court; but all the while the man’s own neighborhood and family may know him to be foul within, though fair enough without.”

41. Qui consulta patrum,] Of the component parts of the Roman civil law Horace mentions three. ‘Jura’ signifies legal rights and rules of law. It has the latter meaning here. ‘Leges,’ properly so called, were laws passed in the ‘comitia centuriata.’ They were first approved by the senate, and then proposed to the comitia by a magistratus of senatorial rank. ‘Plebiscita,’ laws passed by the plebs in their comitia tributa, were made binding on the whole people by the ‘lex Hortensia,’ passed B. C. 288, and thenceforward they had the force of leges. ‘Senatus consulta’ (‘consulta patrum’) appear, in some instances, to have had the force of law during the republic; under the empire, they superseded the legislation of the comitia. Horace might have added other parts of law, and more particularly ‘mores,’ which were all those laws that sprang from immemorial usage.

42. secantur] See S. i. 10. 15, n. ‘Tenere,’ in the sense of gaining a cause, is not common. It is used by Cicero (Pro Caecina, c. 24): “Scaevola causam apud centumviros non tenuit.”

43. Quo res sponsore] See S. ii. 6. 23, n. Horace means a man whose credit is good as a sponsor and a witness.

46. Nec furtum feci] There are some who think themselves very good, who would be bad if they dared. To such a one Horace answers as he answered his slave, when he boasted of his goodness. Vv. 46-56 are a dialogue between the slave and his master; the application, being easily made, is not expressed. Not to be very wicked does not make a man good; nor is it sufficient to abstain from crime through fear of punishment; our motive should be the love of virtue for her own sake. ‘Sabellus’ may mean the ‘villicus,’ or it may be taken for any plain-judging man. Many suppose Horace means himself. Orelli does so. ‘Frugi’ is explained on S. ii. 5. 77.

57. Vir bonus, omne forum] He whom the people believe to be good, whom everybody turns to look at as he walks through the Forum, and looks up to when he speaks in the courts. “Gaude quod spectant oculi te mille loquentem.” (Epp. 6. 19.) There were three principal ‘fora’ in Rome, in which judicial and other public (as well as mercantile) business was carried on. The Forum Romanum was simply called Forum, because it was the largest; and till the time of Julius Cæsar it was the only one. The dictator began the erection of another, adjoining the Forum Romanum, and it was called after him. It was finished by Augustus. Afterwards Augustus built a small forum in the same neighborhood, wherein none but judicial business was transacted. It was partially destroyed by fire, and restored by Hadrian. Other ‘fora’ were afterwards erected by different emperors (Nerva, Trajan, Vespasian). In every ‘forum’ there was a ‘basilica’ (or more than one), a building devoted to the joint purposes of judicial and commercial business. At the end of the building was a part called ‘tribunal,’ devoted to law.

58. vel porco vel bove] The animals most commonly sacrificed by the Romans were sheep, pigs, and oxen. On public occasions these three were sacrificed together, and the sacrifice was called ‘suovetaurilia,’ being a combination of the three names. Private persons would only sacrifice the three on great occasions, and on some there would be several of each or any of them, offered together. Ordinarily they sacrificed but one, according to their means or their zeal.

59. Jane pater!] See S. ii. 6. 20, n. Silent devotion was not practised or understood by the ancients, any more than it is by the heathen or Mahometans now. μετὰ φωνῆς εὔχεσθαι δεῖ is reported to have been a saying of Pythagoras. Silent prayers were supposed to be a veil either for improper petitions, or magical incantations, or something wrong. To speak with men as if the gods were listening, and with the gods so as men might overhear, is a rule found in more than one writer.

60. Pulchra Laverna,] Laverna was a goddess associated with Mercurius, as the god who presided over thieving. The derivation of the word is uncertain.

64. In triviis fixum] Persius, speaking of a man who was above sordid ways, says (v. 110), “Inque luto fixum possis transcendere nummum,” where there is a Scholium which says that boys used to fasten an as to the pavement, and amuse themselves with watching people stop to pick it up. Whether this is referred to by Horace, or whether any such practice existed, is doubtful. It is very likely Horace means no more than a man stooping to pick up an as from the mud.

65. qui cupiet metuet quoque;] Horace joins fear and desire in Epp. i. 2. 51, and ii. 2. 155.

67. Perdidit arma,] The man who is ever hurrying after money, and swallowed up in love of it, has cast away his arms and run away from the ranks of virtue. If you catch him, do not put him to death, but sell him for a slave, which is all he is fit for. He may do good service in keeping cattle, or ploughing, or going with his master, the mercator, to sea, replenishing the market, and so forth.

69. Vendere cum possis] One of the principal sources from which the Romans got their slaves, in earlier times, was the prisoners of war. Dealers always accompanied the camp for the purpose of purchasing them. They were sold on the spot by auction, ‘sub corona,’ that is, with a chaplet on their head to mark them for sale. See Cæsar (B. G. iii. 16). Captives reserved to follow the triumph of the commander were put to death when the procession was over (see Epod. 7. 8, n.). The law-writers derive ‘servus’ from ‘servare,’ as prisoners kept for slavery were not put to death. ‘Annona’ properly signifies the year’s supply of provisions from the harvest. ‘Penus’ signifies provisions of all sorts; here it means all sorts of imported provisions, preserves, etc. ‘Penus’ is of two declensions, the second and third.

73. Vir bonus et sapiens] ‘The virtuous and wise man can speak to Fortune as Dionysus did to Pentheus.’ The scene alluded to is that in the Bacchæ of Euripides (489, sqq.). Vv. 495, 496 are almost literally translated in vv. 77, 78. Pentheus, king of Thebes, hearing that a young stranger has come to his country, giving himself out to be Dionysus, and has tempted all the women to go out and do honor to him, sends his servants to apprehend him. The god allows himself to be taken, and, when brought before the king, describes himself as the servant of Dionysus. Then follows a dialogue, of which the verses above referred to form part. The application is obvious. The good man can bid defiance to the reverses of Fortune, since at any time he wishes he can call death to his assistance,—a bad doctrine for good men. Cicero did not approve of it. He says, “vetat Pythagoras injussu imperatoris, id est Dei, de praesidio et statione vitae decedere” (Cat. Maj. c. 20). The ancients had very loose notions on suicide.

79. mors ultima linea rerum est] This refers to the ‘alba linea’ mentioned on Epp. 14. 9, which was the goal as well as starting-point in the chariot-races.

EPISTLE XVII.

Who Scæva was there are no means of determining, and it is quite immaterial. He bears no part in the Epistle, which might have been addressed to anybody of his age. Its professed purpose is to instruct a young man how to rise in the world by paying court to great people, which is declared to be an art of no small merit. The chief secret of this art is said to be a well-affected modesty, and a tact in letting your wants be rather felt than heard by your patron, and this is the only advice that is offered. The Epistle ends abruptly, and is a mere fragment.

3. docendus adhuc,] He was young, and had yet much to learn. ‘Amiculus’ is a diminutive expressing endearment.

4. Caecus iter monstrare velit;] Erasmus quotes as a proverb μήτε τυφλὸν ὁδηγόν, μήτε ἐκνόητον σύμβουλον. Our Lord twice used it in instructing his disciples (Matt. xv. 14, Luke vi. 39).

8. Ferentinum] This was a municipium on the Via Latina, about forty-six miles from Rome, in the country of the Hernici. It still retains its name Ferentino. It appears not to have been much frequented, and Horace recommends his friend to go there, if the object of his wishes is to avoid the noise of the town, and to lead a quiet life, which he says is not without its recommendations.

10. moriensque fefellit.] Horace uses ‘fallere’ as the Greeks used λανθάνειν (see C. iii. 16. 32, n.). But it is only used absolutely here and in the next Epistle (v. 103). Horace takes his expression from the Greek proverb λάθε βιώσας, which appears to have been used by the Epicureans and Cyrenaics.

11. Si prodesse tuis] Horace’s argument for servility is, that it is necessary, if a man wants to be of use to his friends, and to make himself comfortable.

12. siccus ad unctum.] As a poor man to the rich. ‘Siccus’ means poor, as one who cannot command a dinner, or can only command a dry one; and ‘unctus’ means a rich man who fares sumptuously. The Cynics were called ξηρόφαγοι from their abstinence, and ξηροφαγία among the early Christians was a fast.

13. Si pranderet olus patienter] There is a story of Aristippus, that he was one day passing Diogenes, the Cynic, while he was washing some vegetables for his dinner, and he was accosted thus: “If you had learnt to put up with this, you would not have been a slave in the palace of kings,” alluding to his having been the guest of Dionysius of Syracuse. The answer of Aristippus was: “And if you knew how to associate with your fellows, you would not now be washing herbs.”

15. qui me notat.] ‘Notare’ is used in a bad sense (see S. i. 6. 20, n.).

18. Mordacem Cynicum] The Cynics received their name from the place where Antisthenes taught, the Cynosarges, a gymnasium at Athens. The popular notion of a Cynic (expressed by ‘mordacem,’ ‘biting’) is derived rather from the conduct of the followers (of whom Diogenes was one) than of the founder of the school.

19. Scurror ego ipse mihi,] This verb does not occur elsewhere. The participle is used in the next Epistle (v. 2). Aristippus is supposed to parry the blow (‘eludere,’ a metaphor taken from the gladiators) of Diogenes by admitting, for the sake of argument, that he acted parasite to a king; yet it was for his own advantage; whereas the Cynic acted parasite to the populace for their amusement; he begged their dirty provisions, and gave them snarling jests in return; and by accepting their alms, he acknowledged himself their inferior, and this though he professed to want nothing of them or any one else. ‘Hoc’ refers to the remoter object, as in S. ii. 2, where see note on v. 30.

20. Equus me portet, alat rex,] The Greeks had a proverb, ἵππος με φέρει, βασιλεύς με τρέφει, which words are said to have been first uttered by a soldier of Philip of Macedon to his mother, who entreated him to ask exemption from service.

21. Officium facio:] ‘Officium’ is commonly applied to attendance on great people; and the most servile are wont to say they are only ‘doing their duty’ by their betters. As to ‘vilia rerum,’ see C. iv. 12. 19, n.; S. ii. 8. 83.

23. Omnis Aristippum decuit color] See Epp. i. 1. 18, n. ‘Color’ is ‘color vitae’ (S. ii. 1. 60), and corresponds to ‘vitae via’ below (v. 26). We use ‘complexion’ in the same double sense. Horace means that, while Aristippus paid court to the rich, he could do without them, if necessary. ‘On the other hand,’ he says, ‘he who, on the principle of endurance, puts on his double cloak, I should be surprised if a change of life would suit him’; that is, he is more the creature of habit than the man he condemns.

25. duplici panno] The asceticism of Diogenes was his way of carrying out the principle of endurance, which was a chief feature in his teacher’s system. A coarse ‘abolla,’ a garment thrown loosely over the person, served him for his dress, without tunic. He is said to have been the first to wear it double and to have slept in it, and those who followed him, adopting the same practice, were called διπλοείματοι and ἀχίτωνες. Juvenal says the Stoics differed from the Cynics only in the use of the tunic (S. xiii. 121).

28. celeberrima per loca] See C. ii. 12. 20, n.

30. Alter Mileti textam] The purple and wool of Miletus were held in great esteem by the Greeks. As to ‘chlamys,’ see Epp. i. 6. 40, n. It appears that there were several stories current among the ancients about the indifference of Aristippus to dress. ‘Cane pejus et angui’ is a proverbial way of speaking. ‘Pejus’ occurs in the same connection, C. iv. 9. 50, “Pejusque leto flagitium timet.”

33. Res gerere et captos] He says triumphs are fine things (they reach the throne of Jove and affect the skies), but there is no small merit in pleasing the great, and it is not everybody who can do it.

36. Non cuivis homini] Οὐ παντὸς ἀνδρὸς εἰς Κόρινθον ἔσθ᾽ ὁ πλοῦς. There are various explanations given of this proverb, but none can safely be relied upon. ‘To go to Corinth’ involved a difficulty in some sense or other, and so the proverb applies to anything that is difficult and requires unusual clearness.

37. Sedit qui timuit] The perfect is used as the aorist. ‘He sits idle who is afraid he shall not succeed. Esto! Be it so (let him pass): but what of him who succeeds? Has he not done manfully?’

41. Aut virtus nomen inane est,] ‘Either virtue is an empty name, or the active man does well to look for his crown and his reward.’

42. experiens vir.] This means an active man, who tries every means of success.

45. caput hoc erat,] He means that modesty and the absence of importunity is the best way of succeeding with the great; not to be eager to ask, but to be modest, and take what is offered (see Int.). ‘Erat’ seems to mean ‘this is the point I was coming to.’ But see C. i. 37. 4, n.; Epp. i. 4. 6, n.

47. nec vendibilis nec pascere firmus,] ‘Not salable (because worth nothing) nor sufficient for our support.’ ‘Firmus’ with the infinitive mood is the construction found so frequently in the Odes. See C. i. 1. 18, n.

48. clamat,] He does as good as cry, ‘Give me food!’ and the consequence is another chimes in with, ‘The boon must be divided, and a part cut off for me.’

49. dividuo findetur munere quadra.] ‘Dividuus’ is used in the sense of ‘divisus’: ‘quadra,’ a fourth part, is put for any fragment. See Forcell. for several examples.

50. Sed tacitus pasci] If the greedy fellow could only have been quiet, he might have kept it all to himself. A crow cawing over the morsel luck or thieving has thrown in his way, and thereby attracting the attention and envy of his brethren, applies to many a knave who loses his ill gotten gains through his own folly in parading them.

52. Brundisium comes aut Surrentum] To Brundisium a man might go on business; to Surrentum (Sorrento) for the climate and scenery, which are still very healthy and beautiful. Surrentum was made a Roman colony about this time. We do not hear much of it as a place of resort, though from this passage we may infer that it was one of the pleasant spots on the Campanian coast to which the wealthy Romans went for change of air. Its wines were celebrated (see Epp. 15. 16, n.). In mentioning Brundisium, Horace may have been thinking of his journey with Mæcenas. He says, if a man, going into the country with his great friend, talks of the roughness of the roads, the bitterness of the cold, the loss of his purse, and so on, in order to get money from his patron, he is like the woman who is always crying for the pretended loss of a trinket, in hopes her lover will give her more, till at last she is no longer believed; or the man who pretended he had broken his leg in order to get a ride, but when he broke his leg in earnest, no one would listen to him.

54. viatica] See Epp. ii. 2. 26, n.

55. catellam,] This is a diminutive form of ‘catena,’ and is used for a bracelet or necklace: ‘periscelis’ appears to be an anklet, such as women, and young children of both sexes, in the East, wear universally. ‘Nota acumina’ means ‘the hackneyed tricks.’

59. Fracto crure planum,] The Romans adopted the Greek word πλάνος for a vagabond and impostor. As to ‘plurima,’ see C. i. 7. 8, n. Horace makes the man swear by the Egyptian Osiris, as if that were the most sacred of oaths. Among other new superstitions, the worship of Isis had been lately introduced into Rome. Efforts were made, from time to time, to put it down, and Augustus forbade its being exercised in the city. But under later emperors it became established, with the encouragement of the government, in conjunction with that of Serapis. Osiris was not worshipped separately, but shared, perhaps, the reverence paid to his wife (Isis).

EPISTLE XVIII.

This Epistle contains some more advice to a young man beginning life, as to how he should win the favor of the great. The person addressed is young Lollius, respecting whom see the Introduction to Epp. 2 of this book, which is also addressed to him. The counsel Horace gives is not creditable to himself or the age he lived in.

1. liberrime Lolli,] ‘My frank Lollius.’ See Introduction. On ‘metues,’ see C. ii. 2. 7; and as to ‘scurrantis,’ see last Ep., ver. 19.

4. Discolor,] This means no more than ‘different.’

5. prope majus,] See C. iv. 14. 20; S. ii. 3. 32.

6. Asperitas] A roughness, clownish, uncouth, and disgusting.

7. tonsa cute,] With the hair cut short down to the very skin, which would show a want of regard to appearances.

9. Virtus est medium vitiorum] See C. ii. 10. 5, n.

10. imi Derisor lecti] See S. ii. 8. 20, n. ‘Derisor’ means a parasite whose business it was to keep the company amused with jokes, such as the man described in S. i. 4. 87, sq.

13. dictata magistro] See S. i. 10. 75, n.

14. partes mimum tractare secundas.] ‘Secundas agere’ is a phrase taken from the stage. It applied to all the actors, except the chief. In the ‘mimi,’ which consisted chiefly of dumb show, the inferior parts were all arranged, and the actors played, so as to support the principal character. In most cases one of the parts was that of a parasite. The subordinates were also called ‘adjutores.’ (See S. i. 9. 45, n.; A. P. 192, n.)

15. de lana saepe caprina,] To quarrel about goats’ wool is plainly equivalent to quarrelling about nothing at all.

16. Scilicet ut non] ‘Forsooth, that I should not be believed before anybody else, and boldly bark out what I know to be true! Why, a second life would be a poor return’ (for such an indignity).

19. Castor sciat an Dolichos plus;] This is the same sort of gossip that Mæcenas is represented as discussing with Horace (S. ii. 6. 44, sqq.). If Dolichos be right, the name is that of a Greek slave, derived from Doliche, a town of Thessaly.

20. Brundisium Minuci] This road is only once more mentioned by any classical writer (Cic. ad Att. ix. 6), and it is impossible to say anything about it with certainty, except that it passed by the town of Alba. There was a Porta Minutia leading out of Rome, the site of which is unknown; but it is probable that this road led from that gate, and that it was in the southern part of the city.

22. Gloria quem — vestit] See S. i. 6. 23, n.

25. decem vitiis instructior] ‘Furnished with ten times as many defects.’

26. veluti pia mater] Like a fond mother who wishes her child to be wiser and better than herself, the patron advises his client.

30. Arta decet sanum comitem toga;] ‘A narrow toga suits my humble friend if he be wise.’ The size and shape of the toga are referred to on Epod. iv. 8.

31. Eutrapelus] Aristotle defines εὐτραπελία as πεπαιδευμένη ὕβρις, a refined impertinence. It appears that for his wit this name was given to P. Volumnius, an eques, and friend of M. Antonius, to whom are addressed two of Cicero’s letters (Ad Fam. vii. 32, 33). From the way Horace writes, he must have been dead at this time.

34. honestum Officium,] This means the calls of duty, in a better sense than in the last Epistle (v. 21). See Epp. ii. 2. 68.

36. Thrax erit] See S. ii. 6. 44. Horace says he will get into debt, and be reduced to hire himself as a gladiator, or drive a costermonger’s hack. ‘Ad imum’ is not elsewhere used as ‘ad extremum,’ but it means ‘when he has got to the lowest point.’ As to ‘nummos alienos,’ see Epp. ii. 2. 12, n.

37. Arcanum neque tu] He must not be inquisitive about his patron’s secrets, or betray them, nor praise his own tastes at the expense of the great man’s, nor take to his books when he wants him to go hunting.

38. vino tortus] This expression is repeated in A. P. 435.

41. Amphionis atque Zethi] These fabulous brothers, the sons of Antiope by Zeus, were different in their dispositions, the one being given to music and the other to country pursuits. Zethus, it appears, had a contempt for Amphion’s lyre, and advised him roughly to throw it away, and take to arms, and to useful pursuits, like his own.

46. Aetolis onerata plagis] See Epp. i. 6. Ætolian toils are toils fit for Meleager, the king of Ætolia, and the destroyer of the Calydonian boar. With ‘senium’ compare ‘senectus’ (Epod. xiii. 5).

48. pulmenta laboribus empta;] Compare S. ii. 2. 20: “Tu pulmentaria quaere Sudando.” ‘Pulmentum’ originally signified anything eaten with ‘puls,’ porridge or gruel (a common dish with the early Romans), to give it a flavor. It came afterwards to signify any savory dish.

54. Proelia sustineas campestria;] Compare A. P. 379. The allusion is to the games on the Campus Martius.

55. Cantabrica bella] See C. ii. 6. 2.

56. Parthorum signa] See C. iii. 5, Introduction.

57. et si quid abest] This is mere flattery, like that about the standards. Augustus had no intention of extending the Roman empire at this time. No further conquest was attempted till B. C. 15, when some of the Alpine tribes were beaten by Drusus and Tiberius, and their country made into a province. (See C. iv. 4, Introduction.)

58. Ac, ne te retrahas] Horace adds another reason why he should not refuse to join the amusements of his patron, that he cannot say he has no turn for that sort of thing, for he is wont to amuse himself at home with such sports as sham fights, though Horace does not mean to say he is given to wasting his time on such matters.

59. extra numerum — modumque] This is, literally, ‘out of time and tune.’

60. rure paterno;] Where the estates of the elder Lollius lay or who was his other son, is not known. The two brothers, it appears, got up a representation of the battle of Actium, on a pond perhaps in their father’s grounds, and they made the slaves (‘pueros’) act the soldiers and sailors, while they took the principal characters themselves, the elder acting Augustus, and his brother M. Antonius.

64. velox Victoria fronde coronet.] Victoria is always represented as a young female, with wings, and with a palm branch or a wreath in her hand, or both.

66. Fautor utroque — pollice] In the fights of gladiators, the people expressed their approbation by fanning their thumbs down, and the reverse by uplifting them. When a gladiator had got his adversary down, or disarmed him, he looked to the spectators for this signal, and according as the thumb was up or down he despatched or spared the man. Thus ‘fautor utroque pollice’ is a proverbial way of speaking. See Juvenal (iii. 36).

68. Quid de quoque viro et cui] ‘Quoque’ is from ‘quisque,’ ‘every man.’ ‘Percontator’ is a gossip who is always asking questions in order to retail the answers, generally in a perverted form. His ears are always open to pick up remarks (‘patulae’), and his tongue always active to repeat them.

72. Non ancilla tuum] See S. ii. 5. 91, n. as to the use of ‘non’ for ‘ne.’

75. Munere te parvo beet] ‘Lest he be generous, and make you happy with this trumpery present, or be cruel and refuse it you.’ This seems to be the meaning; that is to say, the patron may take it into his head to gratify his dependant with a present of the slave he admires, and then think he has done enough for him, or he may refuse to make him the present, and this would give him pain.

78. quondam] See C. ii. 10. 17, n. S. ii. 2. 82.

79. deceptus omitte tueri,] ‘When once you have found yourself deceived, do not take him under your protection, but reserve your influence for one you thoroughly know, that, if need be, you may be able to shelter him from calumny; for when the good are slandered, what do you suppose may not happen to yourself?’ The Scholiasts say that Theon was a man of malignant wit in Horace’s time, and that he was a ‘libertinus’ who provoked his ‘patronus,’ and was turned out of his house with the present of a ‘quadrans,’ and told to go and buy a rope to hang himself. This is all we know of him, and this is very uncertain.

91. media de nocte] See S. ii. 8. 3, n.

93. Nocturnos — vapores.] This must be taken to signify the feverish heats that come on after much drinking.

95. obscuri] ‘Reserved.’

100. Virtutem doctrina paret,] Whether virtue is a science (ἐπιστήμη) and capable of being taught (διδακτή) was discussed by Socrates, who held that it was so, in a certain sense. The question was a common rhetorical theme in Horace’s day.

103. fallentis semita vitae.] See Epp. 17. 10, n., and compare Juvenal (x. 363): “semita certe Tranquillae per virtutem patet unica vitae.”

104. gelidus Digentia rivus,] The Digentia (Licenza), rising near Horace’s house (see Epp. 16. 12, n.), after a course of about six miles emptied itself into the Anio, about half a mile beyond the Via Valeria, which crossed it.

105. Quem Mandela bibit,] There is a village called Bardela, which probably stands on the site of Mandela. From its position at the head of the valley, and the winds that blow upon it from the northeast, it was colder than Horace’s residence, higher up the valley, which accounts for the description ‘rugosus frigore pagus’ as compared with ‘temperiem laudes’ in Epp. 16. 8. The expression may be suggested by pictures and other representations of Hiems, who is exhibited as a wrinkled old man, as Ovid describes him, apparently from a picture also: “Inde senilis Hiems tremulo venit horrida passu” (Met. xv. 212).

111. Sed satis est] Horace prays for a good supply of books and provisions, and a quiet mind; but retracts the last, and says he will pray to Jove for what he can give and take away, but a quiet mind he will secure himself.

EPISTLE XIX.

It would appear that Horace had imitators among those who abused him; and if we are to understand him to mean what he says, there were those who took his convivial odes literally, and, coupling them with the example of the old Greek poets, conceived that the way to write verses was to propitiate Bacchus and drink a great deal of wine. Or else he means that they took to writing in the same strain, all about wine and driving dull care away, and so forth, which at second hand would be very poor stuff. Such servile imitators he speaks of with great disgust; and while he exposes their shallowness, he accounts for their malevolence towards himself by the fact of his not having sought their company or hired their applause. He at the same time claims to have been the first to dress the lyric measures in the Latin language, while he defends himself for having adopted the metres of another, by pointing to the examples of Sappho and Alcæus, and takes credit for having avoided the virulence of Archilochus, while he imitated his verse. This is introduced by the way, the chief purpose of the Epistle being to show the folly of his calumniators and the cause of their abuse.

1. Maecenas docte, Cratino,] He addresses Maecenas elsewhere as “doctus utriusque linguae” (C. iii. 8. 5). Cratinus, though he lived to a good old age, and kept his powers to the last, as we have seen (S. i. 4. 1, n.), was a proverbial drunkard.

4. Adscripsit Liber] ‘Adscribere’ is a military term. As to Liber’s attendants, the Fauns, Pans, and Satyrs, see note on C. ii. 19. 4. The poets immediately under the protection of Dionysus were the lyric, the dithyramb having been performed first at the Dionysia. Compare C. i. 1. 31. So the poet is called “cliens Bacchi” (Epp. ii. 2. 78). Liber, the Latin divinity, is here, as elsewhere, confounded with the Greek Bacchus or Dionysus, with whom he had only this in common, that he presided over vines. ‘Ut’ means ‘ever since’ (C. iv. 4. 42).

5. Vina fere dulces] The ancients did not spare the reputation of their poets in this matter; for besides the fame of Cratinus mentioned above, Alcæus, Anacreon, Æschylus, Aristophanes, and many others, have the credit of indulging freely in wine. As to Homer, there is no foundation in his poetry for Horace’s libel, which is simply absurd. David might as well be charged with excess because he speaks of wine as making glad the heart of man. Ennius said of himself that he only wrote when he had got the gout: “Nunquam poëtor nisi podager.”

8. forum putealque Libonis] See S. ii. 6. 35, n. Horace speaks as if he had delivered an ‘edictum’ that the business of the Forum was only fit for the sober and dull, who had nothing to do with poetry; whereupon all that would be thought poets took to drinking day and night. ‘Putere’ is a stronger word for ‘olere,’ used above, v. 5.

12. Quid, si quis vultu torvo] Cato of Utica is here referred to, of whom Plutarch says, that from his childhood he showed in his voice and countenance, and also in his amusements, an immovable, unimpressive, and firm temper. He seldom laughed, or even smiled; and though not passionate, when his anger was roused it was not easy to pacify him. He set himself against the fashions of the times, in dress as in other things, and often went out of doors after dinner without his shoes and tunic; and the fashion being to wear a ‘lacerna’ of bright colour, he chose to wear a dark one. (Cat. c. 1. 6.) He may have worn his toga of smaller dimensions than other people, from the same dislike to the usages of the day. For ‘textore’ we should expect ‘textura’ in this place.

15. Rupit Iarbitam Timagenis] It appears that the person here called Iarbitas (from Virgil’s Numidian king, Iarbas) was a Mauritanian by birth, and that his Roman name was Cordus or Codrus. Timagenes was a native of Alexandria, where he was taken prisoner by A. Gabinius, and sold as a slave. He was sent to Rome, and bought by Faustus, the son of Sulla, who gave him his freedom. He afterwards taught rhetoric, and became famous. It seems that Cordus, endeavouring to imitate Timagenes, and failing, broke his heart with envy.

18. biberent exsangue cuminum.] The fruit of this plant, which is a pleasant condiment, is described by Pliny (xx. 15) as giving a pallid hue to the complexion. It is a plant of Eastern origin. We are familiar with it through the proverbial use of the name by our Lord in his denunciation of the Pharisees, who gave tithes of mint, anise, and cumin, but neglected the weightier matters of the law. It was used to express littleness or meanness in any shape. Horace says, if he happened to look pale by any chance, his imitators would eat cumin-seeds to make themselves look interesting and poetical like him.

23. Parios ego primus iambos] The iambics of Archilochus of Paros. As to his attacks upon Lycambes, see Epod. vi. 13, n.

26. ne me foliis] ‘And that you may not crown me with less noble wreath.’ As to this position of ‘ne,’ see C. iv. 9. 1, n. Horace says he is not to be blamed for imitating Archilochus in his measure and the structure of his verse, for Alcæus and Sappho (he says, and we must take his word for it) did the same; they tempered their Muse with the measure of Archilochus. The iambics of Archilochus are imitated by Horace in the Epodes. Other measures of his he has imitated in the Odes. There is little left of Archilochus but his iambics. The vigorous style of Sappho’s fragments shows the reason why Horace calls her ‘mascula.’ See C. ii. 13. 24, n.

32. Hunc ego non alio dictum] Compare C. iv. 9. 3:

“Non ante vulgatas per artes Verba loquor socianda chordis”;

and 3. 23: “Romanae fidicen lyrae.” ‘Hunc’ Orelli refers to Alcæus, comparing C. iii. 30. 13:

“Princeps Aeolium carmen ad Italos Deduxisse modos.”

It may refer to Archilochus. I do not feel certain about it. Forcellini only mentions one other example of ‘immemoratus’ from Ausonius. ‘Ingenuis’ means ‘candid’ or ‘uncorrupted.’

35. ingratus] He means that the reader is ungrateful who gets gratification from his poems at home, and yet abuses them abroad. ‘Ingratus’ belongs to the second clause as well as ‘iniquus.’ The reason Horace gives is, that he does not go about seeking the good opinion of vulgar critics, giving them dinners and cast-off clothes, and so on, but keeps himself to the company of respectable authors, listening to their writings and getting them to listen to his own. The language is taken from the notion of canvassing for votes at an election.

39. auditor et ultor] These words are reciprocal. The man who listens to a stupid recitation has his revenge when he recites in return. Here it is meant in a good-humored way. Juvenal’s first Satire begins, “Semper ego auditor tantum? nunquamne reponam?” As to the practice of recitation among friends and in public, see C. ii. 1, Int., and S. i. 4. 73, n.

40. Grammaticas ambire tribus] Those who made a profession of literature were called ‘literati,’ ‘eruditi,’ or ‘grammatici.’ The last name was applied principally to those who kept schools or gave lectures, of whom there were a great many at this time at Rome. Inferior writers would give a good deal for their favorable opinion, which would help their books into demand among their scholars. Horace calls them ‘critici’ elsewhere (A. P. 78). ‘Pulpitum’ meant any raised platform from which speeches were delivered. Here it applies to that from which the teachers delivered their lectures.

41. Hinc illae lacrimae.] This became a common way of speaking after Terence (Andr. i. 1. 99): “Atat hoc illud est: Hinc illae lacrimae, haec illa est misericordia.”

Spissis indigna theatris] ‘Theatra’ here means any audience before which recitations of this kind might take place, though the poetry of popular writers was recited in the theatres by ‘mimi’ and ‘mimae.’

43. Jovis auribus] This is the same sort of expression as S. ii. 6. 52: “deos quoniam propius contingis.” ‘Manare’ is not commonly used as a transitive verb. In this construction we find the like words, ‘flere,’ ‘pluere,’ ‘stillare,’ ‘rorare,’ &c. The expressions ‘nugis,’ ‘poëtica mella,’ ‘tibi pulcher,’ all seem to apply rather to the lyrical compositions than to the Satires, and the former appear to have been the objects of all this servile imitation.

45. naribus uti] See S. i. 6. 5, n., and Persius (i. 40): “nimis uncis Naribus indulges.”

47. diludia posco.] This word occurs nowhere else. It means, in the first instance, an interval allowed to gladiators between their contests. ‘Iste locus’ must mean the ‘pulpita’ or ‘spissa theatra’ above mentioned. It seems as if the speaker meant to gain time, and, without declining the contest, made objections to the ground, and asked for a postponement, the language of the arena or palæstra being kept up. The meaning, in plain terms, is, that he does not wish to be brought into competition with others in the way of public recitations or criticism, because such matters, though they may begin in good temper, generally issue in strife and bad passions. ‘Iste’ expresses ‘that place which you propose.’

EPISTLE XX.

With this composition addressed to his book (which can hardly be any other than this collection of Epistles) Horace sends it forth to take its chance in the world. He addresses it as a young and wanton maiden, eager to escape from the retirement of her home and to rush into dangers she knows nothing of. He tells her it will be too late to repair her error when she discovers it; that she will be caressed for a time and then thrown away, and, when her youth and the freshness of her beauty are gone, she will end her days in miserable drudgery and obscurity. He concludes with a description of himself, his person, his character, and his age.

1. Vertumnum Janumque,] The Vicus Thurarius, in which the Scholiasts say Vertumnus had a temple, was part of the Vicus Tuscus (S. ii. 3. 228), and the Argiletum was a street leading out of that street. In the Argiletum Janus had a temple. The Sosii were Horace’s booksellers (see A. P. 345), and their shop may have stood near temples of Vertumnus and Janus, at which Horace says his book is casting longing glances. The Scholiasts say they were brothers. The outside skin of the parchment-rolls were polished with pumice-stone, to make them look well.

3. Odisti claves] The ‘capsae’ or ‘scrinia’ (S. i. 4. 21, n.) were locked, or sealed, or both; and women and young persons were locked or sealed up in their chambers, that they might not get into mischief, which restraint Horace says they liked, if they were chaste. He professes to reproach his book for being tired of staying at home, and being shown only to his friends, and wanting to go out to be exposed for sale, to which purpose he had not trained it. There can be no doubt that what is here distinctly said of the Epistles is true of the other works of Horace, that they were shown to his friends, and circulated privately before they were collected and published.

8. In breve te cogi] As applied to the book, this means that it will be rolled up and put into a case, and not taken out again. The metaphorical language is kept up in the following words, in ‘peccantis,’ and in the notion of its being thrown aside when the freshness of youth shall have left it.

9. Quodsi non odio peccantis] ‘But if the prophet is not blinded by his aversion to the offender,’ that is, if I am not led by my aversion to your wantonness to prophesy too harshly of your fate. ‘Aetas’ is used for any time of life, according to the context; but more frequently for old age than youth.

13. Aut fugies Uticam] You will be shipped off to Utica (in Libya), or to Ilerda (Lerida) in Spain, or anywhere else in the remote provinces, tied up as a bundle of goods (‘vinctus’), and I shall laugh, for what is the use of trying to save such a willful thing? as the driver said, when his ass would go too near the edge of the precipice, and he drove him over in a passion. It is not known where this fable comes from. Compare A. P. 467.

18. balba senectus.] This keeps up the image in v. 10. Horace says his book will be reduced in its old age to the poor people’s schools in the back streets (see S. i. 10. 75, n.). His writings came very soon to take their place with Homer and Virgil in all the schools. See Juvenal (vii. 226):

“Quot stabant pueri, cum totus decolor esset Flaccus, et haereret nigro fuligo Maroni.”

19. Cum tibi sol tepidus] In the heat of the day, and before dinner in the baths, people read to themselves or one another. It is not easy to see the connection of this line with what goes before. It is something of a contradiction. But he supposes the book may perhaps be popular for a time.

20. Me, libertino natum patre] Compare S. i. 6. 6, 46, 47.

23. Me primis Urbis] This he considers no small praise. See Epp. i. 17. 35, and S. ii. 1. 75. He does not mind at this time referring to his old generals, Brutus and Cassius. The description he gives of himself corresponds with that we find in his biographer. See also C. ii. 11. 15. Epp. i. 4. 15.

24. solibus aptum,] This means that he liked warm weather. See S. ii. 3. 10, n.

28. Collegam Lepidum] Horace was born on the 8th of December, B. C. 65, in the year of the consulship of L. Manlius Torquatus and L. Aurelius Cotta. He completed his forty-fourth year, therefore, in December, B. C. 21. In that year M. Lollius (to whom C. iv. 9 is addressed) and Q. Æmilius Lepidus were consuls. ‘Duxit’ merely means that he had Lepidus for his colleague. Why Horace should be so particular in letting the world know his present age in the above year I cannot tell. He was in a communicative mood when he wrote, and tells us in a few words a good deal about himself.