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COLLEGE SERIES OF LATIN AUTHORS
EDITED BY
CLEMENT LAWRENCE SMITH AND TRACY PECK
3 7 -. ζ -. *;
i-' ¢ â
THE
SATIRES AND EPISTLES
OF
H O R A C E
EDITED, WITH NOTEs,
IBY
J. B. GREENOUGH
IBOSTON
PUBLISHED BY GINN & COMPANY
I 887
… Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1887, by
CLEMENT L. SMITH AND TRAcy PECK,
in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
ELECTROTYPED BY J. S. CUSHING & Co., BosToN.
COLLEGE SERIES OF LATIN AUTHORS
EDITED BY
CLEMENT LAWRENCE SMITH AND TRACY PECK
SATIRES AND EPISTLES OF HORACE
GREENOUGH
I would dedicate this book, such as it is, to Professor HENRY
W. TORREY, but for whose suggestions in regard to the poet it
could never have been written at all.
*t* J. B. GREENOUGH.
INTRODUCTION.
HORACE says (Sat. I. Io. 74),—
. . . Am tua de//zems
Vilibus in ludis dictarâ carmina malis ?
A'o/z ego.
Eut his genius and fame very early brought upon him the fate
which he deprecates, of having his works used as a literary text-
book in all kinds of Schools. And this use of his poetry has
brought with it several important consequences. In the first
place, it insured their preservation to our own times, while so
many writers have been absolutely lost. Secondly, it has pre-
vented any serious interpolation by imitators of later times.
Thirdly, it has caused an arrangement of his works in manu-
scripts and in later printed editions which is not chronological
but educational. The Satires and Epodes were his earliest
poetical efforts, being written, for the most part, about the same
time, between B.C. 4o and B.C. 3o, though in manuscripts and
editions, as well as in educational use, the Odes precede them.
Fourthly, it has produced in the manuscripts a state of things
that is perhaps unparalleled in those of any other author. Clas-
sical authors generally have come down to us in such a form,
that by a careful study such as has been given to the subject
by the scholars of the last fifty years, the manuscripts can be.
divided into families, and their genesis and trustworthiness de-
termined with considerable accuracy and certainty. But with,
Horace, the number and late date of the manuscripts, — some
two hundred and fifty, all probably of later date than the tenth
century, — along with the uninterrupted cross correction of one
vi INTRODUCTION.
by another, caused by the general familiarity with the poet, has
made it next to impossible to establish any families, or any pre-
cedence of any one over others, or even of any dozen over the
rest. So that what we have of Horace is a text very much
altered by the tinkering of scholars according to their knowl-
edge and whims, but at the same time checked off by reference
to the constant stream of tradition. This process has appar-
ently been going on from the poet's own time. So that very
little can be done now in the way of improvement of the text,
unless some manuscript should come to light that has lain un-
used for more than a thousand years. For a description of the
manuscripts, the student is referred to Orelli and (less fully)
IXeller and Holder.
The Satires and the poems generally seem to have been first
written for private reading and circulation, somewhat as single
poems appear nowadays in ephemeral literature and are later
collected into volumes, and not to have been properly published
until some time after their composition. Exactly at what time
this was done in the case of the Satires is unknown, but we may
well suppose that the first book was published before B.C. 33,
in which year Horace received from Mæcenas the gift of his
Sabine farm, a gift which can hardly be looked upon otherwise
than as a return for the compliment of the dedication to Mæ-
cenas in I. I. There is no clear indication that the two books
of Satires were published separately, yet there is a slight differ-
ence of style between the two, and the scene with Trebatius in
II. I. seems to indicate a new undertaking, a conclusion which
is also strengthened by the completeness of the first book and
the evident incompleteness of the second.
The form of composition Horace himself calls Sermones, to
distinguish it from the higher flights of poetry which he attempts
in his lyrics. But the name Satura must also have been given
to the work at the time (as in II. I. I), and has always been
the prevailing title.
INTRODUCTION. vii
This kind of literature, which is almost entirely, if not
entirely, Roman (Satura quidem tota nostra esz, Quint. X.
I. 93), had not originally the same meaning that satire has
at present. Its real meaning is * miscellany” (cf. /amae sa-
tura, /ex satura), and it was first used, so far as we know,
by Ennius (B.c. 239—169) to describe a collection of verse
with mixed metres as well as mixed subjects. This mean-
ing was also followed by Pacuvius, his nephew, and later by
M. Terentius Varro, the great antiquarian, a contemporary of
Cicero. Lucilius, in the time of Africanus the Younger, used
the word to denote a series of pictures of life and manners in
verse (generally hexameter), more nearly, though not entirely,
in the style which we now call satirical. His satires, of which
we have fragments, consist of scenes and character sketches
from life, and are generally, though not always, aimed at the
folly and wickedness of mankind, particularly as found in the
party opposed to the clique of Scipio and his friends. The exact
connection of Lucilius' efforts with Greek models is not clear.
In Horace's time there seems to have been no idea that there
was any immediate connection with anything Greek except a
remote one with the Old Comedy. Some of the writings of
Ennius may have suggested the development that Lucilius gave
to satire. There was evidently also among the Romans a strong
tendency towards dramatic composition of a lighter kind, as is
indicated by the Fescennine and Atellane farces. There was
also a strong tendency to “ convicia,'' or personal abuse in con-
versational form, ** chaffing,” or * Billingsgate.” There were
also extant at that time some compositions in Greek called
Σέλλοι, which seem to have been poetical semidramatic char-
acter sketches, something like the prose writings of Lucian.
These Si/oi may have given a suggestion to Ennius and Lucil-
ius ; and as the comedy which would naturally have sprung
from all these seeds was crowded out by the translation of
the more advanced Greek dramas, the Satire seems to have
been the result of the comic tendency of the Romans turned
viii INTRODUCTION,
by the want of Roman comedy and by the Greek character
sketches in another direction. In this sense Satire is an
abortive comedy.
The model of Lucilius was exactly followed by Horace, and
the result is these two books of Satires, which for genial humor
and amusing representation of the vices and follies of mankind,
are unequalled in any literature. From the acute observation
of human nature and social life that they show, and the felicity
of expression that abounds on every page, they have always
been among the most admired and most quoted works of
ancient literature.
The style is always easy and graceful ; never forced nor
affected. They must have been written at a dash, however
much Horace may have trimmed them and filed them after-
wards. They are never labored, notwithstanding the care with
which they must have been written, and if an idea attributed to
Horace is far-fetched we may be almost sure it is wrong and
not Horatian. The difficulties often found in following the
thought are not caused, as in some authors, by a labored ob-
scurity. They are the natural consequence of a quick seizing
and setting forth of salient points to an audience that could
readily supply the missing links.
The peculiar characteristic of Horace is his genial humor.
He does not inveigh against the vices of mankind, but sets
forth the laughable aspects of their vices, and constantly in-
cludes himself among the objects of his satire, being in this
respect more like Thackeray than any other author before or
SlI)C€.
Archaisms.—The Satires, in accordance with their colloquial
character, are full of expressions such as were used in com-
mon life, though they had become antiquated or had never
appeared in literature.
Ae. g., the passive infinitive in -ier; qu?s for quibus; the con-
tracted forms of the perfect, like erepsemus, surrexe, evasti ;
INTRODUCTION. ix
caöa//us ; quid agis ; dulcissime rerum ; unde mihi Japidem ;
/iceόiz... ce/ebre? (II. 2. 59); mille ovium (II. 3. I 97); mummo
addicere (II. 5. Io9) ; quid catasae est; so/dizm ; ca/alior;
peric/um ; marrare (for dicere), etc.
Arosoa y. — Horace allows himself several liberties in the
composition of his verse : —
I. Short syllables lengthened before the caesura.
qui non defendit, | a/io . . ., I. 4. 82.
confidems tumidus || adeo . . . (doubtful reading), I. 7. 7.
me quis humasse velit | Aiacem ..., II. 3. 187 (originally
long).
Ga//omi praecomis erat | acipemsere . . ., II. 2. 47 (origi-
nally long).
2. Consonantizing of z. z/indemyazor, I. 7. 3o.
3. Frequent elisions, perhaps a colloquial usage.
mu//a me haòes vitia, immo a/io et fortasse minora, I. 3. 2o.
quam rem agis (doubtful reading), II. 6. 29.
4. Shortening long vowels before another vowel.
sì me amas, I. 9. 38.
5. Synizesis, cerea, I. 8. 43, and Contraction, deicere de saxo.
6. Hypermetric verses, running over to the next verse (only
two). «.
. . . convictore zzstzs amicoque
a puero . . ., I. 4. 95.
. . . zzzi me so/us razszye peregreze
extrem. . ., I. 6. Io2.
7. Hiatus, mùm ades? (doubtful reading), II. 2. 28.
Q. HORATI FLACCI
S E R M O N E S
LIBER PRIMVS
* • * _è ùa' v. *. <
Qui fit, Maecenas, ut nemo, quam sibi sortem
seu ratio dederit seu fors öbiecerit, illa
contentus vivat, laudet diversa sequentis ?
Title, Sermones. Though this
work of Horace is now universally
called Satires, yet the ancient title
seems to have been Sermomes (com-
versatioms). See Introduction. `
SATIRE I. The main theme is
Horace's favorite one, of avarice.
As usual, however, he does mot at
once attack the theme directly, but
comes to it sidewise, under cover
of a long preamble, which extends
as far as v. 28.
VERSE I. Maecenas : this satire
by being addressed to Mæcenas,
serves as a sort of prologue to the
work, and dedicates itto him. This
address, as well as the interrogative
form of the beginning, gives the con-
versational tone, of which Horace is
fond. — quam sortem : notice that
the Latin constantly puts the so-
called antecedent noun in the rela-
tive clause, and puts that clause
first in order. This is, no doubt,
the earlier and more natural con-
struction, according with the origi-
mal interrogative character of the
Latin relative. Translate by chang-
ing the order of the clauses: “ wit/,
that /oz zwhich,” etc. — sibi : the
use of the reflexive is due to a feel-
ing of indirect discourse, whereby
the thought is put into the mind
of the indefinite person spoken of,
whose mental state contentus rep-
resents, and so implies a verb of
saying.
2. ratio, choice, as deliberate or
calculated (ratus). — dederit, Âas
assigned. — obiecerit, has throwm
imz /. is zway. The preposition ob is
especially used of things happening
by chance; cf. obvenio, obtingo.
The subjunctives are occasioned by
the dependence of the relative
clauses on the ut clause.
3. laudet, pra?ses f/ae /oz of, z.e.
ca//s /iappy, or emvies. The subject
is an implied quisque, suggested
by nemo. — diversa, different pur-
suizs (from his own). •
2 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
* O fortunati mercatores ! ' gravis annis
miles ait, multo iam fractus membra labore. 5
Contra mercator, navem iactantibus Austris,
* Militia est potior.
Quid enim ?
Concurritur ; horae
momento cita mors venit aut victoria laeta.'
Agricolam laudat iuris legumque peritus,
sub galli cantum consultor ubi ostia pulsat. IO
Ille, datis vadibus qui rure extractus in urbem est,
sólos felices viventis clamât in urbé.
4. O fortunati, etc.: in accord-
ance with the dramatic form which
satire takes (perhaps on account
of its origin, see Introduction),
Horace gives the direct words of
the persons referred to. — fortuna-
ti : as getting wealth without the
toils to which the soldier is ex-
posed. — gravis annis, i.e. he is
getting old, but is not rich yet,
while the toils are more grievous to
him. Another reading, armis, is
possible, but not so good.
5. fractus, s/.atterea. — mem-
bra, frame. — labore : the battles
of the Romans were won by the
spade even more than by the
sword, and in full marching order
the soldier carried a weight of from
forty to sixty pounds.
6. mercator: it must be remen-
bered that the mercator is a trader
who sails with his wares in his own
ship; hence iactantibus austris.
— austris : the south wind is an
especially Squally and rainy wind
in the Mediterranean. Cf. 77. II.
I45; Hor. Od. I. 7. I 6. The word
may be translated sozuzvesters, or
sout/ierly gales.
7. potior: it is the long and
tedious suffering that affects the
trader, and he contrasts with it the
short and sudden danger of battle.
— quid enim, of course (lit. zv/.y ?
?m fac?). Cf. II. 3. I 32, and quid
est as an expression of assent.
enim does not here have its ex-
planatory force, but the earlier one
of im fact, as in quia enim, quippe
enim, immo enim. Cf. quisnam,
etc. — concurritur, ?/ie omzset co///es.
8. momento, sλοrz space. — lae-
ta: as enriching the soldier by
booty. These occupations are all
here looked upon as means of gain
(cf. v. 28).
9. iuris legumque peritus, the
/earmea' mam of /aw ama statute,
though of course iuris, etc., belong
to peritus. The jurisconsult, or
consulting lawyer, is referred to,
who was not an advocate, but gave
opinions for fees. — agricolam :
because he does not have to get up
at so early an hour.
IO. sub galli cantum : as the
proceedings of the Roman courts
begam at an early hour, the client
must get advice at a still earlier
one, but of course the statement
here is hyperbolical.
I I. ille, ?/ie ofher. — datis vadi-
pus: the defendant, on answering
to the first summons in a court of
law, gave bail for his appearance at
a subsequent day for the hearing.
Cf. I. 9. 36. — in urbem : all the
legal and other official business was
transacted in the city itself, though
mamy of the tribes lived many miles
away. — rure, i.e. from /.is far///.
I 2. in urbe : naturally the coun-
tryman thinks those who live in the
I. 4-22.]
HORATI SERMONES. 3
Cetera de genere hoc, adeo sunt multa, loquacem
delassare valent Fabium.
Ne te morer, audi
quo rem *deducam. Si quis deus, * En ego,' dicat, I5
* iam faciam quod voltis : eris tu, qui modo miles,
mercator ; tu, consultus modo, rusticus : hinc vos,
vos hinc mutatis discedite partibus. — Heia !
quid statis ? ' — nolint.
Atqui licet esse beatis.
Quid causae est, merito quin illis Iuppiter ambas 2O
iratus buccas inflet, neque se fore posthac
tam facilem dicat, votis ut praebeat aurem ?
city would not have to get up so
early. — cetera de genere hoc,
the other cases of fhis Aeimd. An old
formula, borrowed by the poet from
Lucretius.
I 3. adeo, so, to the degree indi-
cated by the fact stated (not as a
result, but directly) in valent. The
same idea might be expressed as a
result by ut valeant, but it would
be more formal. This reference of
demonstrative words to something
not expressed but implied in the
context is very common in Latin,
and, indeed, in all lamguages, for
that matter.
I4. delassare, ?. e. if he should
undertake to enumerate them. —
valent, are emo/g/. zo. — Fabium :
an old scholiast says the reference
is to Q. Fabius Maximus of Narbo,
who wrote on the Stoic philosophy
in the wordy style of that sect.
And, as this also agrees with the
allusions in Sat. I. 2. I 34, the two
may well be the same person.
I 5. quo rem deducam, z/íe
Aoima? / a/// comámg zo (lit. zw/,i//em.
A a/// &rìngimag z/ae m/zazzer), ?.e. the
insincerity of men in these wishes
to change their lot. This insincer-
ity he shows dramatically by intro-
ducing an imaginary scene of a god
appearing and offering to grant
their wishes. In such a case they
would refuse. The reason why,
which is their love of money, he
begins to state in v. 28, which
brings him to his main theme.
I 5. en, /oo/è yozz. — ego : the ex-
pression of ego by its emphasis
gives a force something like ** You
want to have your lots changed ;
well, then, /'// do it for you.”
I 7. hinc, zo zhaz side ; lit. fro///
7/, is side, like a parte dextra. —
mutatis, cham gi1 g. The perf. part.
is often best rendered by our pres-
ent, which the Latin lacks.
I 8. partibus, 7ró/es, the regular
theatrical word. — heia, ha//oo, as
if he said, ** What does this meam ?
I thought you wanted to change.**
I 9. quid statis? 7V/y do yoa,
s/a//a' f/ieore ? ?.e. instead of starting,
as they are bidden in discedite. —
nolint, zhey zwozu/d//'z care zo, zwou/d
z^e/7zse, the apodosis to dicat, v. I 5.
— licet, z/iey /// g/z. One expects
the subjunctive, but verbs of this
kind take the indicative, in cases
where there is a protasis expressed
or implied.
2 I. buccas inflet: to show the
extreme inconsistency of the behav-
ior of these persons, the poet gives
a comic picture of Jove's wrath,
probably borrowed from the stage.
HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
Praeterea, ne sic, ut qui iocularia, ridens
percurram, (quamquam ridentem dicere verum
quid vetat ? ut pueris olim dant crustula blandi 25
doctores, elementa velint ut discere prima ;
sed tamen amoto quaeramus seria ludo ;)
ille gravem duro terram qui vertit aratro,
perfidus hic caupo, miles nautaeque per omne
audaces mare qui currunt, hac mente laborem 3O
sese ferre, senes ut in otia tuta recedant,
aiunt, cum sibi sint congesta cibaria : sicut
parvola (nam exemplo est) magni formica laboris
23. praeterea, furt/ier///ore, or
zo contimue. — qui: supply the verb
from percurram.
24. ridentem, zwi//i /aughter. —
quamquam, though, corrective to
the preceding, not strictly opposed
tO tamen.
25. quid vetat? 7what law for-
àias ? — pueris, c/ìi/a're/?, the word
being used often for both sexes. —
olim, mozv amd' t/ien. — crustula,
cooÂies, Zar/s, gingerbread, evidently
much like our own in modern times,
though perhaps more elaborate.
The name is from their beimg baked
hard. — blandi, coa.ximag.
26. elementa prima, t/ieir A-
A- C?s.
27. sed tamen, όut sti?? (though
we might with propriety go on in
this vein). — quaeramus, Zez zus
zza/^// '0.
28. Here begins the real subject,
but even here Horace attacks it
carefully, beginming with the excuse
of the money-getter. — gravem
duro: these words are intended to
heighten the color of the picture by
indicating the hard labor which the
farmer undergoes to gain wealth.
29. perfidus caupo: these words
seem out of place, aS the context
would naturally have some word
referring to the jurisconsult. But
we may suppose that Horace aban-
dons the lawyer because, though a
good opposite to the farmer, yet he
seeks honor more than money ; and
so in this place Horace substitutes
the huckster. Certainly the epi-
thet perfidus is more appropriate
for the latter than the former. The
rest of the satire does not follow
the same line of thought, but pre-
sents another phase of the dissatis-
faction of men, not with what they
do, but with what they have; but this
is omly the other side of the same
thing, and is the real reason why
they would not change if they
could.
3o. mente, idea, purpose.
3 I. senes, in their olâ age. —
tuta, zz/ztrozzö/ea', ì. e. by the toils
and dangers they have undergone
before.
32. cum sibi, etc., zJ/aema fhey
/.ave /ieaped zep a sagffîciemz szore. —
cibaria, lit. ?ratio/zs or sztósászemce ;
which Horace makes them say in
allusion to the gathered store of the
ant, referred to below.
33. parvola: inserted to set off
the force of magni; not a merely
ornamental epithet, for such are
rare in this work, and are not to be
I. 23-45.]
HORATI SERMONES. 5
ore trahit quodcumque potest atque addit acervo,
quem struit, haud ignara ac non incauta futuri. 35
Quae, simul inversum contristat Aquarius annum,
non usquam prorepit et illis utitur ante
quaesitis sapiens ; cum te. neque fervidus aestus
demoveat lucro, neque hiemps, ignis, mare, ferrum,
nil obstet tibi, dum ne sit te ditior alter. 4O
Quid iuvat immensum te argenti pondus et auri
furtim defossa timidum deponere terra ?
* Quod si comminuas, vilem redigatur ad assem.'
At ni id fit, quid habet pulchri constructus acervus ?
Milia frumenti tua triverit area centum, 45
presumed. — exemplo est, she is
z/aeir patterm, i.e. they justify then-
selves by her example, but, as Hor-
ace shows, their conduct is different
from hers. See v. 36. — laboris :
a qualitative genitive. That con-
struction is unusual without a gen-
eral word like animal, but this
may be a conversational idiom.
36. inversum, cham ging, c/osâ mag;
lit. turned back to begin again. —
Aquarius : the sum is in this con-
stellation about the middle of Jan-
uary, at which time really begins
the short Italiam winter.
38. sapiens, î. e. she knows
enough to gather provision in sum-
mer and stay at home in winter ;
another reading, patiens, which is
very old, would meam comtemtea, not
greedy for more. Cf. II. 6. 9 I. —
cum te, etc., i.e. though the searcher
for gain makes the ant his pattern,
yet he does not follow her in her
use of what she gets but still ac-
cumulates, undeterred by any peril.
— aestus, etc. : proverbial expres-
sions for obstacles, just as we say
** go through fire and water.”
4O. dum ne, so /omag as . . . mot,
2. e. provided you can outstrip your
neighbor in getting gain (cf. Cic.
de Off. 3. 2I).— alter, your meighbor.
Alter is used for any one of a class
opposed to some particular person
mentioned.
4I. quid iuvat ? ?.e. what good
does this acquisition of wealth do,
which you don't use? — immen-
sum, emormozus, coumt/ess.
42. furtim, etc., stea/t/.?/y. The
picture is of a miser hiding his gold
in the earth (the usual place in
ancient times)while anxiously watch-
ing that no one shall see where.
43. quod si, etc.: the miser's
reply. The moment you begim to
take from the heap it all goes.
** Change a tem-dollar bill, and it is
all gone.” — assem : the copper
coin of account of the Romans,
worth at this time about one cent. •
44. at ni : Horace's reply. —
quid pulchri: a colloquial form
of expression for the abstract. —
acervus : notice that,.as the main
idea is that of amassing wealth gen-
erally, the figure under which the
wealth is represented constantly
changes.
45. triverit, suppose âz yields ;
the hortatory subj. used in a con-
cession. — area, £/, resλάng /?oor.
The ancients threshed their grain
6 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
non tuus hoc capiet venter plus ac meus : ut si
reticulum panis venalis inter onusto
forte vehas umero, nihilo plus accipias quam
qui nil portarit.
Vel dic, quid referat inträ
naturae finis viventi, iugera centum an 5O
mille aret ?
* At suave est ex magno tollere acervo.'
Dum ex parvo nobis tantundem haurire relinquas,
cur tua plus laudes cumeris granaria nostris ?
ut tibi si sit opus liquidi non amplius urna,
vel cyatho, et dicas, * Magno de flumine mallem 55
quam ex hoc fonticulo tantundem sumere.'
Eo fit,
plenior ut si quos delectet copia iusto,
cum ripa simul avolsos ferat Aufidus acer;
at qui tantuli eget quanto est opus, is neque limo
turbatam haurit aquam, neque vitam amittit in undis. 6o
by making a hard clay floor in the
open air, and treading out the grain
with cattle, — a method which is
still used in Greece and Italy. —
milia, i.e. modium, pecÂs ; but we
may translate bushels.
46. ac, t/iam, an archaic use pre-
served in poetry amd conversation.
— ut si, fusz as, £f, i.e. though you
have the trouble of taking care
of your great crop, you can't enjoy
any more than the rest; just as the
slave who happens to be carrying
the rations in a train gets no more
than his share, for all that.
47. venalis, a gang of slaves.
49. referat: notice the re, from
refert, not refero.
5o. finis, the limits which nature
sets to our wants. — viventi, the
usual construction is genitive, but it
may be that the colloquial or popu-
lar construction was dative.
5 I. at suave est, όut i? is so
sweet, etc.; the miser's reply.
52. relinquas nobis, let me draw.
Cf. Eng. /eaze in ** leave me be.”
53. cumeris, bas%ets ; opposed
to the greater store implied in gra-
I)aI12.
54. urna, a measure of three
gallons, a far. — cyatho, also a
measure, of about a twelfth of a
pint, a spoonful.
55. mallem : this reading is per-
haps preferable to malim, inasmuch
as hoc seems to indicate that the
persom supposed has the spring to
draw from but not the river; hence
the construction might naturally be
contrary to fact.
56. eo, i/z z/ía? zJay, z.e. on ac-
count of this desire to take from a
great quantity.
57. si quos delectet, whoever
taÂes pleasure im, etc. The state-
ment is a kind of parable continu-
ing the case supposed in v. 54.
58. Aufidus : Horace as usual
takes a particular river, the one near
his birthplace, to represent any
rapid stream. -
6o. turbatam, turbid; but also
of life, umquiet. — vitam : implying
that riches are likely to be one's
ruin.
I. 46—72.]
HORATI SERMONES. 7
At bona pars hominum, decepta cupidine falso,
* Nil satis est,' inquit, “quia tanti quantum habeas sis.'
Quid facias illi?
Iubeas miserum esse, libenter
quatenus id facit ; ut quidam memoratur Athenis
sordidus ac dives, populi contemnere voces 65
sic solitus : * Populus me sibilat, at mihi plaudo
ipse domi, simul ac nummos contemplor in arca.'
Tantalus a labris sitiens fugientia captat
flumina. . . . Quid rides ? Mutato nomine, de te i
fabula narratur; congestis undique saccis 7o
indormis inhians, et tamquam parcere sacris
cogeris, aut pictis tamquam gaudere tabellis.
61. at: the Ms. authority is per-
haps in favor of ut, which would
introduce another comparison like
ut in v. 54. The sense, however,
seems better with at, as if Horace
said, ** All this is true, yet men won't
act accordingly, but justify their
seeking of gain, by v. 62, which
shows them to be incurable '°; hence
quid facias, etc. — bona pars, z/ae
best part, ì. e. the greatest. — falso,
z/aim2, i.e. for which there is no real
good as its object.
62. tanti sis, you are ratea, az,
etc. The subjunctive is the regular
one of the second person with in-
definite subject. — quantum, zwhaz.
63. quid facias illi? zw/.az cam,
3/ou do for a mam /i£e f/.at ? i.e. one
who is determined to go on in this
way, as is indicated by nil satis est.
— miserum esse, emjoy /. is misery;
but the expression has the idea of
an imprecation, like ** go and be
hanged.” — libenter : î. e. with his
eyes open, knowing the true state
of the case.
64. quatenus, here imasmuc/, as
(which is an expression of the same
origin in English). — ut quidam,
etc. : implying that he must get his
consolation for his misery out of the
wretched pleasure of avarice, as
was the case with the Athenian.
65. contemnere, scorm, saying to
/. imse?/. — voces, cries, ofthe popu-
lace as they hooted after him.
66. at mihi plaudo : î. e. I take
my satisfaction for the hisses of the
people in my approval of myself.
68. Tantalus, etc. : Horace be-
gins as though he were going to
warn the miser by the story of Tan-
talus in the world below, in the
manner of a preacher of virtue, a
class of men not held in much re-
spect. See Sat. II. 3 and I. I. I2o.
69. quid rides : the miser, who
has no longer any belief in the
stories of Hades, or any care for
this sort of preaching, laughs at
Horace's attempt to convert him
with the fables of the world below.
But Horace turns upon him, and
shows that Tantalus' fate is not a
future terror, but λῖs condition 7zow.
He then proceeds to prove the
similarity of his condition with that
of Tantalus, in sight of good things
which he cannot enjoy.
7 I. inhians, g/oazâ mg, i.e. with
his mouth open, staring at them in
admiration, as if he would like to
eat them, and continuing his enjoy-
8 - HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
Nescis quo valeat nummus, quem praebeat usum ?
Panis ematur, holus, vini sextarius, adde
—•— •- ~—- . -— ' / • • • -•— - v • 'J — — . — ' • -? . ~ , a- •
quis humana sibIdöleat natura négatis. ' 75
An vigilare metu exanimem, noctesque diesque -
formidare malos fures, incendia, servos,
ne te compilent fugientes, hoc iuvat ?
Horum
semper ego optarem pauperrimus esse bonorum.
At si condoluit temptatum frigore corpus, 8o
aut alius casus lecto te affixit, habes qui
assideat, fomenta paret, medicum roget, ut te
suscitet ac gnatis reddat carisque propinquis.
Non uxor salvum te volt, non filius ; omnes
vicini oderunt, noti, pueri atque puellae. 85
Miraris, cum tu argento post omnia ponas,
si nemo praestet, quem non merearis, amorem ?
At si cognatos, nullo natura labore
ment of them till he falls asleep.
— tanquam, with sacris.
* • 73. nescis quo, etc.: î. e. “ Don't
'you kmow what can be done with
'all this money you have, that you
keep it in this way untouched?”
3He begins as if he were going
'to state some grand object, but
suddenly turning, he gives merely
the absolute wants of humanity.
He thereby implies that this, after
all, is the only thing money can do.
The turn is not strictly logical, but
all the more effective for that.
75. quis = quibus. — doleat...
negatis, suffers from f/.e ze/amt o/.
76. an, etc.: here used, as often,
in a kind of 7reduc/io ad aöszurdumz.
Prosaically expressed, “Ism't money
to be used to be a blessing, or do
you enjoy, etc.,” the other alterna-
tive, which is obviously absurd.
79. optarem : î. e. if the case
were mine ; hence imperfect. The
reading optarim has a more general
S€nS€.
8o. at si, etc., ôzzz of co?zrse, etc.,
an argument im favor of the miser,
but with obvious irony. — tempta-
tum, attacked, a regular word. —
frigore, a chi//, referring to the
fevers so common in Italy.
82. assideat, 72 urse, an almost
technical word. — roget, ca// i//,
also technical.
84. non, mo, moz evem, etc., the
word getting emphasis from its po-
sitiom. This is Horace's answer to
his ironical defence of the miser's
position.
85. noti, acquaimtamces. — pueri
atque puellae, óoys ama, g? r/s ama'
a//, an almost proverbial expression
for zwithout dis/imction of age or
sex. — quem non merearis, zwhic/.
3/ou do moi/iimg to deserve.
87. praestet: subjunctive on ac-
count of its connection with mira-
ris, in a kind of indirect discourse.
88. at si, etc. : î. e. by devoting
yourself to the pursuit of gain, you
make it impossible to keep even
I. 73—102.]
EHORATI SERMONES. 9
quos tibi dat, retinere velis servareque amicos,
infelix operam perdas, ut si quis asellum 9O
in campo doceat parentem currere frenis.
Denique sit finis quaerendi, cumque habeas plus,
pauperiem metuas minus, et finire laborem
incipias, parto quod avebas, ne facias quod
Vmmidius quidam.
Non longa est fabula : dives, 95
ut metiretur nummos, ita sordidus, ut se
non umquam servo melius vestiret, ad usque
supremum tempus, ne se penuria victus
opprimeret metuebat.
At hunc liberta securi
divisit medium, fortissima Tyndaridarum. Ioo,
* Quid mi igitur suades ? ut vivam Maenius ? aut sic
ut Nomentanus ?'
the love of your kindred which
nature gives you at the start without
your taking any trouble. The read-
ing an si could meam, “ Do you
think it would be useless labor to-
attempt to win friends?” – The first
seems better. Notice Horace does
not say gez, but Aeeep.
90. asellum, etc.: evidently pro-
verbial. “ By your conduct you
have made yourself as incapable of
friendship as an ass is of speed.”
92. cum, 7zozω ἐλat.
93. metuas, begin zo fear. —
finire, set a limit. Notice that
Horace does not advise him to stop
suddenly, but begin, as it were, to
think of an end.
94. parto: in early prose the ante-
cedent of quod would be expressed
in agreement with parto, but con-
versation and poetry allow the
Omission, which is common later.
95. Vmmidius : the story is not
otherwise known, though the name
occurs elsewhere. -
98. supremum tempus, f/ie Jasz
day of his /ife.
IOO. divisit: change the voice
Pergis pugnantia secum
in. translating. — Tyndaridum, of
7ymdareus' /ime. The allusion is to
Clytemnestra, who killed her lord.
in the same manner, as if it were
“ the most undaunted of husband-
slayers.” It is of course implied
that -the woman was a concubine,
so that the case is an illustration of
the idea in non uxor, etc., and the
following. •
IOI. quid mi suades, etc.: the;
miser thinks that the poet in con-
demning avarice approves extrava-
gance, and asks if he wants him to.
be a Maenius (a spendthrift). A
reading Naevius refers to a per-
son said to have been a miser.
This gives a passable sense, though
not approved by the commentators;
as if he said, ** What do you advise.
me, then, to be a miser, or do you
want me to be a spemdthrift?” as if
these were the only alternatives, and .
there could be mo doubt which was
the better. The reading retained
gives two examples of spendthrifts.
Io2. Nomentanus: a noted
spendfhrift. — pergis, do yott per-
sisz, a'o you a/zways ? i.e. ** Do as
10 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
frontibus adversis componere ?
Non ego, avarum
cum veto te fieri, vappam iubeo ac nebulonem.
Est inter Tanain quiddam socerumque Viselli. Io5
Est modus in rebus, sunt certi denique fines,
quos ultra citraque nequit consistere rectum.
Illuc, unde abii, redeo : nemon' ut avarus
se probet ac potius laudet diversa sequentis,
quodque aliena capella gerat distentius uber, IIO
tabescat, neque se maiori pauperiorum «
you always do?” — secum, zwit/,
(to) each other, a very common use
of the reflexive. — pugnantia, op-
posea, at variamce. — frontibus
adversis, utter/y, square/y, diamez-
rical/y. The figure is drawn from
bulls and rams, but is hardly admis-
sible in English.
Io3. componere : the technical
sense of the word is matc/i, pair
off. If this is taken, the meaning
is, ** Why do you always match (in
argument) things squarely opposed
to each other, as if there were
nothing between, setting only the
two extremes against each other,
and not, as you should, one extreme
against the meam.” It may also be
taken in the sense of put zogether,
i.e. identifying things utterly incom-
sistent and unlike, as moz being a
miser with beimg a spemdthrìfè, and
not being a spemdthrìfè with beimg a
miser, whereas Horace shows that
there is a middle ground, and con-
sequently these things supposed by
the miser to be the same are really
utterly opposed to each other.
Io5. Tanain : said to be a eunuch
of whom, as ofVisellius, nothing else
is known. — quiddam, a point, that
is, a mean, so that one isn't obliged
to be either one or the other. —
socerum, etc.: a man we are told
who had the swelling of a hernia.
Io6. modus in rebus, a fus?
measure im everythimg. — fines,
limits. Horace's favorite ethical
principle. .
IO7. ultra citraque, om either
side o/.
1o8. nemon' ut avarus: a
troublesome passage of which no-
body can find the key. The mean-
ing is obvious, being the same as
the point in v. I, the discontent of
mankind. The difficulty is in the
construction. No authenticated
reading omits the ne (n'), nor
would the hiatus seem very toler-
able, though perhaps paralleled by
Od. I. 28. 24. But the ne is appar-
ently superfluous. If the ut clause
is taken as the ordinary one denot-
ing a state of things, the ne might
be a colloquial usage like clauses
of exclamation, egone ut inter-
pellam (£/.e idea that, etc.), or it is
l)arely possible to treat ut as inter-
rogative, λοzw, in which case a pleo-
nastic ne might be justified ; cf.
utrum ne. — avarus, in /.is greed,
added as the true reason why no
mam is contented with his lot.
I IO. quodque, etc.: a different
phase of discontent is here repre-
sented. At the outset, men appear
as praising the lot of another on
account of its supposed ease, but
here, for its greater gain. Cf. note
to v. 29. — distentius, etc.: simply
to express greater prosperity.
I. Io3-I2I, II. I, 2.]
HORATI SERMONES. 11
turbae comparet, hunc atque hunc superare laboret.
Sic festinanti semper locupletior obstat,
ut, cum carceribus missos rapit ungula currus,
instät equis auriga suòs vincentibüs, illum II5
praeteritum temnens extremos inter euntem.
Inde fit, ut raro, qui se vixisse beatum
dicat, et, exacto contentus tempore, vita
cedat uti conviva satur, reperire queamus.
Iam satis est.
Ne me Crispini scrinia lippi I2O
compilasse putes, verbum non amplius addam.
Ambubaiarum conlegia, pharmacopolae,
mendici, mimae, balatrones, hoc genus omne
I 12. hunc atque hunc, this
^mam amd this (in succession, op-
posed to the crowd).
I 13. obstat, stamds in his path,
i.e. is before him in the race.
I 14. ungula, the /?ying λοο/, to
make the figure endurable in Eng.
— carceribus, the barriers, special
stalls in which the horses stood
until the rope at the entrance was
dropped, and they rushed forth
(emissos) to the track (Spatium).
I I 5. illum, that other.
I I6. euntem, as rum ming, i.e.
as soon as he is passed, he belongs
with all the rest in the rear, and is
no better than the hindmost himself.
I I7. inde, i.e. from this rivalry.
I 18. exacto tempore, zwhem ?/ie
term of his /ife is complete.
I 19. conviva satur, a zwe//-fed
guest, a diner-out who has enjoyed
his dinner, but has had enough.
An idea common to several schools
of philosophy, but more particularly
the Epicuream (cf. Lucr. III. 95 I).
I I9. iam satis est: notice that
the end as well as the beginning is
informal. Horace breaks off abrupt-
ly for fear of being too verbose and
tedious, which fear he jocularly
expresses by his allusion to Crispi-
nus. This person was a Stoic
philosopher who preached the cant
of that school, to the disgust of
full-blooded, fastidious, and sincere
natures like Horace. The high
morality and rigid logic and pre-
cepts of the Stoics made it easy for
them to fall into cant, and one
could profess and teach the tenets
of the school without much mental
or moral effort, using the high-
sounding sermons and glittering
paradoxes of previous sermonizers.
Horace, whose doctrine of the
meam approaches the Peripatetic
school, never loses a chance to gibe
the Stoics. This does not prevent
him however from often urging
Stoic precepts. Cf. II. 3.
SATIRE 2. This satire is upon
a particular form of excess, but the
preamble (to the middle of v. 28),
on extremes in general, is as usual,
far from the main subject, and
treats of the want of perception
12 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
maestum ac sollicitum est cantoris morte Tigelli :
quippe benignus erat.
Contra hic, ne prodigus esse
dicatur metuens, inopi dare nolit amico 5
frigus quo duramque famem propellere possit.
Hunc si perconteris, avi cur atque parentis
praeclaram ingrata stringat malus ingluvie rem,
omnia conductis coemens obsonia nummis,
sordidus atque animi quod parvi nolit haberi, IO
respondet.
Laudatur ab his, culpatur ab illis.
Fufidius vappae famam timet ac nebulonis,
[dives agris, dives positis in faenore nummis] ;
quinas hic capiti mercedes exsecat, atque
amomg mankind of the true course
of virtue, which consists in keeping
the golden meam.
I. Ambubaiarum, mzzzsic-girls,
a class of pipers from the East, not
of the best reputatiom. — conlegia:
humorously used to describe the
troupes of these persons, as if they
had am official. corporate organiza-
tion, like more respectable guilas,
or societies, especially those of the
religious musicians. — pharmaco-
polae, quacÂs, who sold their own
medicines, or sellers of perfumzes,
in both which senses the word is
used.
2. mendici, beggars, including
many Eastern priests and fortune-
tellers, as also jugglers. — mimae,
/ow players. The lowest class of
farces, the mimes, allowed women
om the stage. Acfresses is rather
too respectable a word here. —
genus: î. e. the classes that thrive
om the vices (and virtues) of the
prodigal, by catering to a life of
luxury.
3. Tigelli: Marcus Hermogenes
Tigellius was a skilful musician and
remarkable singer, and a friend of
Julius Cæsar, as well as later of
Augustus, famous also, like many
of that class of persons in later
times, for his luxury and prodigal-
ity.
4. quippe benignus erat, for
/èe zwas a generozes Sozz/. — contra,
om the other hama', contrasting an-
Other (hic), who is a parsimonious
creature.
5. inopi, imo zJamt. -
6. frigus, etc.: i.e. to clothe and
feedhim.— duram, with both nouns.
7. hunc : a third, but also a
prodigal, like Tigellius.
8. ingrata, zzmzsatisfyì mag ; lit.
that gives no pleasure and yields
nO return.
9. conductis, öorrowed, i.e. at
usurious interest. — obsonia, daîmz-
ties, any food which is used to give
relish to bread, the main staple of
ancient diet.
IO. animi parvi, s//za//-souled.
I I. respondet : î. e. se strin-
gere, etc., quod, etc. — his, this
c/ass ; illis, ἐλe of/ier.
I2. Fufidius, a usurer.
I 3. Rejected by some editors.
I4. quinas, i.e. fivefold. As the
ordinary rate of interest was one
per cent a month, this would be
sixty per cent. — exsecat, s/ices off,
7. e. in advance, as in bank discount.
II. 3-25.]
HORATI SERMONES. 13
quanto perditior quisque est, tanto acrius urget; I5
nomina sectatur modo sumpta veste virili
sub patribus duris tironum.
* Iuppiter!' exclamat, simul atque audivit ?
pro quaestu sumptum facit hic.'
* Maxime ' quis non
* At in se
Vix credere possis
quam sibi non sit amicus, ita ut pater ille, Terenti 2O
fabula quem miserum gnato vixisse fugato
inducit, non se peius cruciaverit atque hic. -
Si quis nunc quaerat, * Quo res haec pertinet ?' illuc :
dum vitant stulti vitia, in contraria currunt. -
Malthinus tunicis demissis ambulat ; est qui 25
I 5. quanto perditior, zhe meam^-
er zo razán. — quisque, ome. This
use of quisque is common in
all kinds of comparisons to make
the idea more individual, as if it
said, “ each man in proportion to,'°
etc.
I6. nomina, debis. In the ac-
count-books of the Romans, the
name at the head of the ledger was
the evidence of debt; hence nomen.
comes.to be used for the account
(in all senses, as in English), and
for the debt against one, where we
should say notes or bills. — sumpta,
etc., fusz come zo //zamahood, when of
course their desire for pleasure and
their dependence would be greatest.
The manly toga, or plain white robe,
was put om at the pleasure of the
father about the age of seventeem,
and this (dies tirocinii) was an.
important occasion.in the life of the
young mam, as he was then admitted
as a man among men.
I7. duris, Varsâ, as not indulg-
ing their sons in their pleasures,
whence the young men had more
need of money.
I8. in se . . . sumptum facit,
Àe spemas upoma /aimse?f.
I9. pro quaestu, i/z proportiom?
zo his gains. — vix, etc. : notice
that the connectives are constantly
omitted to give the freedom of con-
versation; om. z/ae contra/y, or
zw/y /
2O. quam non amicus, zw/taz
am eme//?/, as torturing himself with
privation in the miser's fashion. —
pater ille, z/ie fat/ier, i.e. the well-
known one. • *
2 I. fabula: the Hazuzomzimoru-
7/ze/zos, or Self-Tormentor, of Ter-
ence. — miserum vixisse inducit,
sλοzws Zizyìmag ämo zw?re/c/iedmzéss. The
word inducit properly means
άrìmgs omz zo z/ae szage, but, as vixisse
is past, it means here ** shows to
have lived.”
22. atque, iham, a meaning and
use of atque often found in early
Latin.
23. quo ... pertinet, Zωλὰer ...
zemas, ì. e. what is shown by these
examples?
24. dum vitant, etc. : the gene-
ral statement of the doctrine of the
meam as held by the Peripatetic
school.
25. Malthinus, etc. : examples
of extremes in other matters. There
is a supposed reference to Maecenas,
but it might be any one of a hun-
dred others. — est qui (sc. ambu-
lat), amof/ìer.
14 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
inguen ad obscenum subductis usque facetus.
Pastillos Rufillus olet, Gargonius hircum.
|Nil medium est.
Sunt qui nolint tetigisse nisi illas,
quarum subsuta talos tegat instita veste:
contra alius nullam nisi olenti in fornice stantem. 3o
Quidam notus homo cum exiret fornice * Macte
virtute esto,' inquit sententia dia Catonis.
* Nam simul ac venas inflavit taetra libido,
huc iuvenes aequum est descendere, non alienas
permolere uxores.'
* Nolim laudarier,' inquit, 35
* sic me' mirator cunni Cupiennius albi.
Audire est operae pretium, procedere recte
qui moechos non vultis, ut omni parte laborent;
utque illis multo corrupta dolore voluptas
26. obscenum : translate as adv.,
dmdecemt/y; properly, imdecemt, be-
cause not. usually exposed. — face-
tus, am exquisite. The word is
especially applied to persons who
are over-refined by intercourse with
society, in one age a dandy, in
another a dude.
27. pastillos, lo2enges, to per-
fume the person. As the ancients
were unacquainted with distillation,
perfumes were conveyed in various
vehicles, especially in oils, or, as
here, in little cakes. — hircum, dirz
ama' sweat. The word is very often
used of the Smell of the body in
confined places, like the armpits.
One of the extremes is over-care of
the body; the other, neglect of
simple cleanliness, of both of which
the poet complains.
28. nil medium est, zhere ìs mo
7mida/e course, a repetition in other
words of the principaltheme.—sunt
qui, etc. : instances of extremes in
another direction. — tetigisse : the
perf. inf. is apparently an archaic
construction, which survived especi-
ally in conversational and legal
usage.
29. quarum : î. e. matrons, as ap-
pears from instita. — subsuta,
zrai/img. the instita was appar-
ently a flounce sewed on to the bot-
tom of the stola, or long tunic of
married women.
3o. fornice : the arches of the
Circus Maximus were the special
abodes of people of the kind re-
ferred to ; cf. I. 6. I I3. Hence the
InaII1€.
3 I. notus, of Άis acquaimtamce.
32. sententia dia, etc.: an imi-
tation of Lucilius (Valeri semtemtia
dia), and Lucretius, 3. 37 I ; cf. II.
I. 72.
36. albi: referring to women of
respectability, who are not obliged
to wear the dark-colored toga of the
prostitute.
37. audire est, etc.: imitated for
the comic effect from Ennius, who
uses this line in regard to the Romam
state, of course with vultis in the
affirmative.
39. corrupta, spoi/ed, marred.
II. 26-55.]
HORATI SERMONES. 15
atque haec rara cadat dura inter saepe pericla. 4O
Hic se praecipitem tecto dedit; ille flagellis
ad mortem caesus ; fugiens hic decidit acrem
praedonum in turbam ; dedit hic pro corpore nummos;
hunc perminxerunt calones ; quin etiam illud
accidit, ut quidam testes caudamque salacem 45
demeteret ferro.
* Iure,' omnes ; Galba negabat.
Tutior at quanto merx est in classe secunda,
libertinarum dico, Sallustius in quas •
non minus insanit, quam qui moechatur. At hic si,
qua res, qua ratio suaderet quaque modeste 5o
munifico esse licet, vellet bonus atque benignus
esse, daret quantum satis esset nec sibi damno
dedecorique foret.
Verum hoc se amplectitur uno,
hoc amat et laudat * Matronam nullam ego tango.'
Ut quondam Marsaeus, amator Originis ille, 55
4o. rara : the pleasure is marred
and rare at that.
41. hic, etc.: describing the pe-
ricla.
46. iure omnes, servea' /iim,
?right, say all. — Galba: it is im-
plied that he was one of the suffer-
ers, who naturally can't see the jus-
tice of it. He is said by a scholiast
to have been a jurisconsult ; and if
so, negabat is equivalent to non
placuit, and refers in jest to his
professional opinion, as if he had
been formally consulted on the point.
— negabat, ?/.ought mot.
47. secunda : equally removed
from the class of v. 3o, and that of
V. 29.
48. Sallustius, etc.: but even in
this safer course there is a chamce for
am excess, which is ruinous. Prob-
ably the person referred to is an
adopted son of the historiam.
5o. qua, as (really limiting, om/y
so far as). — res, /. is ìmzerest, ì.e.
his pecuniary condition. — ratio,
7reasom, good sense. — suaderet :
changed from suadeat, an apodo-
sis with omitted protasis (zwould
suggest), on account of the tense of
vellet ; but as licet would be in
' the indicative on account of the
meaning of the word (** verbs of
necessity, propriety,” etc.), the
tense of vellet has no effect on
it. — modesfe munifico : a kind
of oxymoron, Zavisλ ἐm ///oderaziom.
5 I. bonus atque benignus,
Âimd/y ama' gemerous. Notice that
these words are much less strong
than munifico, which has an idea
of prìmzce/i/zess, but they represent
what the man means to be. In his
want of moderation, however, he
oversteps his mark.
53. hoc (abl.) : ?.e. matronam,
etc. Cf.
** Compound for sins they are inclined to
Ey dàmning those they have no mind to.”
55. Originis, a famous mima.
16 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
qui patrium mimae donat fundumque laremque,
* Nil fuerit mi,' inquit, * cum uxoribus unquam alienis.'
Verum est cum mimis, est cum meretricibus, unde
fama malum gravius quam res trahit.
An tibi abunde
personam satis est, non illud, quidquid ubique 6o
officit, evitare ?
Bonam deperdere famam,
rem patris oblimare, malum est ubicunque.
Quid inter-
est in matrona, ancilla peccesne togata ?
Villius in Fausta Sullae gener, hoc miser uno
nomine deceptus, poenas dedit usque superque 65
quam satis est, pugnis caesus ferroque petitus,
exclusus fore, cum Longarenus foret intus.
Huic si mutonis verbis mala tanta videntis
diceret haec animus * Quid vis tibi? Numquid ego a te
magno prognatum deposco consule cunnum 7o
velatumque stola, mea cum conferbuit ira ?'
· quid responderet ? * Magno patre nata puella est.'
At quanto meliora monet pugnantiaque istis
dives opis natura suae, tu si modo recte
57. fuerit: hortatory subjunctive.
59. res, properzy, really the same
as in v. 5o, but differently expressed
in English.
6o. personam, the particular
character (here matronarum), as
opposed to the ruinous vice in gen-
eral, expressed in illud, etc.
62. ubicumque, în am y case, in
regard to any of the classes men-
tioned.
63. togata: the toga was the
necessary dress of all such women,
as the stola of the respectable
matron (cf. v. 7I).
64. Villius, próbably Sextus Vil-
lius Annalis, a friend of Milo, cf.
Cic. ad Fam. II. 6. I. — in, imo the
case of, as often. — Fausta, wife of
Milo and daughter of Sulla. — ge-
ner: so called in jest.
65. nomine : z.e. Fausta, by
which her noble birth was indicated.
67. fore : abl. offoris. — Longa-
renus, another lover of the woman.
68. verbis, om behalf of, as the
spokesman.—videntis, ì.e. suffering.
69. diceret, haa, saza', cf. note to I.
3. 5. — animus, î. e. his passions.
7 I. stola: worn only by respect-
able matrons, cf. v. 29, and togata,
v. 63.
73. at: opposing the following
to the thought contained in magno,
etc. — pugnantia, zutter/y az varì-
amce, cf. I. I. Io2.— istis.: the dative
instead of cum, in accordance with
the Greek (and perhaps also the
popular) usage, cf. I. 4. 48.
74. dives opis suae, r?c/. ?// /ìer
ozv/z resources, î. e. who can easily
satisfy her wants. — natura, ì.e.
II. 56—9I.]
HORATI SERMONES, 17
dispensare velis ac non fugienda petendis 75
immiscere. Tuo vitio rerumne labores,
nil referre putas ?
Quare, ne paeniteat te,
desine matronas sectarier, unde laboris
plus haurire mali est quam ex re decerpere fructus.
Nec magis huic inter niveos viridisque lapillos, 8o
sit licet hoc, Cerinthe, tuum, tenerum est femur aut crus
rectius, atque etiam melius persaepe togatae est.
Adde huc, quod mercem sine fucis gestat, aperte
quod venale habet ostendit, nec, si quid honesti est
iactat habetque palam, quaerit quo turpia celet. 85
Regibus hic mos est : ubi equos mercantur, opertos
inspiciunt, ne, si facies, ut saepe, decora
molli fulta pede est, emptorem inducat hiantem,
quod pulchrae clunes, breve quod caput, ardua cervix.
Hoc illi recte : ne corporis optima Lyncei 9O
contemplere oculis, Hypsaea caecior illa, -
unsophisticated, not perverted by
refinements.
75. dispensare, ma?2age, ?.e. use
one's means with discretion. — fu-
gienda, etc., ?.e. comfouma rig/iz ama!
7ωrong. But the words are used in
the sense of the Stoic philosophy
in reference to things which nature
would suggest to us to seek and to
avoid respectively ; cf. I. 3. I I4.
76. tuo: in regard to his desires,
which are in his own power to con-
trol, so that the trouble arising from
want of controlis really his own fault.
— rerum, cárczzmzszamaces, which it
is not in his power to prevent, as it
is in the other case.
77. nil referre, í? makes mo di/.
ference, ì.e. do you think it is all
the same whether you bring your
misfortunes on yourself, or suffer
undeservedly ? — paeniteat, haze
?reasom £o repemt.
79. est, âz ís mecessary, om?e is
/âÄe/y. The constructiom, a favorite
one with Horace, seems to be
imitated from the Greek.
8o. huic, ?.e. matronae. — la-
pillos: pearls and emeralds which
the women of quality wear.
8I. sit licet hoc ... tuum, ἐλομg/.
zhis 7nay öe yozzr zasze, referring to
the preceding line.
85. quo, λογω s/ie 7/ay, z€Jays zo.
86. regibus, prò maces, nabobs, rich
7/eem, cf. II. 2. 45. .
87. facies, figure, sÃape.
88. molli, te/zder, zweaÂ. —- indu-
cat, /a/ée 272 ; a figure derived from
the net or snare. — hiantem, greeay.
Cf. I. I. 7 I and note.
9o. illi, ?/iey, as opposed to the
lover, who is less careful. — ne, so
ao mo!, lit. (I tell you this) that you
may not, etc. — Lyncei (with ocu-
lis), one of the Argonauts, famous
for his keen sight.
9I. Hypsaea, umknown.
18 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
quae mala sunt, spectes.
O crus ! O brachia ! Verum
depugis, nasuta, brevi latere ac pede longo est.
Matronae praeter faciem nil cernere possis,
cetera, ni Catia est, demissa veste tegentis. 95
Si interdicta petes, vallo circumdata, nam te
hoc facit insanum, multae tibi tum officient res,
custodes, lectica, ciniflones, parasitae,
ad talos stola demissa et circumdata palla,
plurima, quae invideant pure apparere tibi rem. IOO
AJtera, nil obstat : Cois tibi paene videre est
tat nudam, ne crure malo, ne sit pede turpi ;
metiri possis oculo latus.
quam mercem ostendi?
An tibi mavis
insidias fieri pretiumque avellier ante
* Leporem venator ut alta Io5
in nive sectetur, positum sic tangere nolit,'
cantat et apponit: “ Meus est amor huic similis; nam
transvolat in medio posita et fugientia captat.'
Hiscine versiculis speras tibi posse dolores
atque aestus curasque gravis e pectore pelli? IIO
92. O crus: the words of the
blind admirer.
93. brevi latere, short-zwaisted.
95. Catia: one of Horace's fav-
orite side hits.
96. nam te, etc. : the common and
well-known longing for forbiddem
fruit.
98. custodes, etc. : i.e. all of this
train surrounds, and so conceals her,
thus exciting curiosity and desire. —
ciniflones, dressîmg-m/uaids, strictly
servants who used the curling-tongs.
IOO. plurima, a thousama' thimgs.
— invideant, /. imder. — apparere,
after the analogy of the infinitive
with impedio and prohibeo. —
rem, ?.e. thêmgs, as they are.
IOI. altera: subject of quin ap-
pareat, or the like. Translate, zwif/,
z/ae ofher, and omit the verb as in
Latin. — Cois (sc. vestibus): a
transparent gauzy kind of silk gar-
ments made in Cos, and worn only
by this sort of people. — est, îz ís
possible, cf. v. 79, and II. 5. Io3. '
Io5. ut, how, with cantat.
IO6. positum, sez öefore häm. —
sic, fust as /èe is, without any trouble
on the hunter's part. — nolit: cf. I.
I. I9.
IO7. cantat, quotes ; the senti-
ment being from Callimachus, ÆØ.
3 I (Meineke). — amor: abstract.
Io8. in medio posita, zwhaz ís
sez before iz, Open to everybody. —
fugientia captat, chases fyimg
gamze, cf. I. I. 68.
IO9. versiculis, /imes ; referrimg
to the quotation, but treating it as
a charm to conjure away the pamgs
of love.
I Io. aestus, fever. — pelli, be
exorcäsed, charmed.
II. 92—130.]
HORATI SERMONES. . 19
Nonne, cupidinibus statuat natura modum quem,
quid latura sibi, quid sit dolitura negatum,
quaerere plus prodest et inane abscindere soldo ?
Num, tibi cum fauces urit sitis, aurea quaeris
pocula ? Num esuriens fastidis omnia praeter
Tument tibi cum inguina,
pavonem rhombumque ?
num, si
II5
ancilla aut verna est praesto puer, impetus in, quem
continuo fiat, malis tentigine rumpi ?
Non ego : namque parabilem amo venerem facilemque.
Illam, * Post paulo,' * Sed pluris,' * Si exierit vir,'
I2O
Gallis, hanc Philodemus ait sibi, quae neque magno
stet pretio neque cunctetur, cum est iussa venire.
Candida rectaque sit ; munda hactenus, ut neque longa
nec magis alba velit, quam dat natura, videri. -
Haec ubi supposuit dextro corpus mihi laevum,
I25
Ilia et Egeria est: do nomen quodlibet illi,
nec vereor, ne, dum futuo, vir rure recurrat,
ianua frangatur, latret canis, undique magno
pulsa domus strepitu resonet, vepallida lecto
desiliat mulier, miseram se conscia clamet,
I I I. natura: î. e. natural wants,
as opposed to perverted desires borm
of an artificial civilizatiom.
I I 2. quid (latura), zw/iaz satìs-
factiom she wi/? give /ierself. — quid
negatum, zv/iaz prìvatìom, etc.
II 3. inane, zhe shozw. — soldo,
z/ae subsfamce (for form see Introd.).
II4. num, say, or ?e/? ///e.
I2O. illam (sc. esse) : opposed
to hanc, v. I2I. — sed pluris, όuz
/or //zore 7/zo/tey. These quotations
are treated as descriptive adjectives,
or epithets of the woman.
I2I. Gallis, the priests of Cybele.
— Philodemus, an Epicurean phi-
losopher, a contemporary of Cicero.
I3o.
Some lost epigram of his is no doubt
» quoted or alluded to.
I 23. sit, should be, mus? be. —
munda, adorned. — hactenus: as
a limitation, om/yso far.—longa : by
means of any coiffure or high heels.
I 24. dat, gramts, i.e. than nature
has made her.
I 26. Ilia, etc. :
birth.
I 29. pulsa, with his knocking. —
vepallida, 7white as a s/ieet, with
ve- intensive (orig. out ? cf. ex).
I 3o. miseram, etc.: in English
we should keep the direct discourse,
a/, zvretc/ ea, mae / — conscia, /ier
confidante, a Slave, the go-bctween.
7. e. of the noblest
20 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
cruribus haec metuat, doti deprensa, egomet mi.
Discincta tunica fugiendum est ac pede nudo,
ne nummi pereant aut puga aut denique fama.
Deprendi miserum est ; Fabio vel iudice vincam.
III.
Omnibus hoc vitium est cantoribus, inter amicos
ut numquam inducant animum cantare rogati,
iniussi numquam desistant.
Sardus habebat
ille Tigellius hoc. Caesar, qui cogere posset,
I3I. cruribus: for heinous of-
fences, such as this treachery to her
master would be, slaves had their
legs broken on an anvil. — depren-
sa: the woman, who in such a case
lost a part of her marriage por-
tion. »
I 33. denique, at any rate, even
if he escapes the other misfortunes.
I 34. Fabio, no doubt the same
philosopher mentioned in I. I. I4,
according to whose doctrine, of
course as a Stoic, nothing was mis-
erum to the sage. Yet even he
would have to admit that this was.
The abrupt ending after the climax
in deprendi, etc., is in Horace's
favorite manner. However far he
may go, he stops unexpectedly,
doubtless on purpose to avoid the
appearance of formal preaching.
SATIRE 3. This satire is directed
against the fault of censoriousness
and the habit of detraction and dis-
paragement of one's friends. These
vices had probably increased, as
often happens, with the increase of
refinement and the scarcity of other
objects on which to exercise men's
critical faculties. Horace evidently
saw that they were fatal to the
social intercourse of a court, and
found them the more hurtful in that
they were practised in a Pharisaic
spirit under the pretence of virtue.
Hence the precepts of this satire.
Here again the poet advances, not
directly, but by a flank attack,
starting off with a diatribe against a
member of the court circle now
dead, as if he himself were one of
the detractors. Presently, however,
he shows that what he has said is
only an example of the disparage-
ment which he wishes to inveigh
against.
I. The poet begins with a general
charge, but the emphatic position
of omnibus shows that the stricture
is supposed to be intended for Some
particular person to be mentioned
later.
3. iniussi, umbida'em, zz/zámvífed.
— Sardus : the word may well be
supposed to have a disparaging
tone, as the Sardinians were not
much esteemed at Rome.
4. Tigellius: thesame person who
is mentioned in the second satire. —
Caesar : Augustus. — posset, etc. :
these subjunctives are not in the
contrary-tO-fact construction, but
stand for present tenses transferred
to past time. If we imagine them
used of a case in the present, their
true character is easily seen. pos-
set, in any case, comes under the
characteristic class. See A. & G.
Gr. § 307. /.
II. 131—134, III. 1—17.] HORATI SERMONES. 21
si peteret per amicitiam patris atque suam, non 5
quicquam proficeret; si collibuisset, ab ovo
usque ad mala citaret * Io Bacche !' modo summa
voce, modo hac resonat quae chordis quattuor ima.
Nil aequale homini fuit illi ; saepe velut qui
currebat fugiens hostem, persaepe velut qui IO
Iunonis sacra ferret ; habebat saepe ducentos,
saepe decem servos ; modo reges atque tetrarchas,
omnia magna loquens, modo, * Sit mihi mensa tripes et
concha salis puri et toga, quae defendere frigus,
quamvis crassa, queat.'
Deciens centena dedisses I5
huic parco, paucis contento, quinque diebus
nil erat in loculis.
5. patris, ?.e. Julius Cæsar, his
adoptive father. — non quicquam
proficeret, he zwozu/a moz haze the
/eas? effect.
6. si collibuisset, íf he too a
famcy. — ab ovo usque ad mala:
z.e. from the beginning to the
end, since the promulsis or antepast
consisted of eggs and the like, and
the dessert came last, as with us.
If we substitute oysters for eggs, and
d'esserz for app/es, the translation
will be tolerably near.
7. citaret, zwou/d s/o/z/. — Bac-
che : the e is used as long, as
standing in the original at the end
of a metrical phrase. — sum-
ma : as the lyre was held, the
deepest note was above and the
highest below. Hence we must
invert the words in English, refer-
ring them to pitch and not position.
8. resonat, accords. — chordis:
dative. •
9. aequale, unâformz, regular,
comzsászent. — homini illi, aóout the
7nam. — qui : sc. curreret.
IO. persaepe : sc. incedebat.
Notice the economy of words, where
curreret is suggested by currebat,
Noctis vigilabat ad ipsum
and its form by ferret. Again,
some word of walking is indicated
by the manner of proceeding de-
scribed, but its form is determined
by currebat.
I I. habebat: ì.e. in his train as
he appeared abroad.
I 2. decem : a small number for
the princely style of the Romans.
Cf. I. 6. I I 6. — reges, prò paces, przc/.
7/ze/2, i.e. of his intercourse with them,
amd of matters in which they were
concermed, indicating a life at courts.
I 3. m agna, om2 a gra?2d, sca/e. —
modo, mozv sayi mg. — tripes, f/, ree-
/egged, as opposed to the finer tables
with ome support in the centre
(orbis). — concha salis puri:
suggesting simplicity with cleanli-
ness and decency. There was a
kind of sanctity about the saltcellar
(salinum), which was in a mammer
dedicated to the household gods.
I 5. deciens centena: sc. milia
sestertium, a mzi//iom. — dedisses,
suppose yote /ad gêvem? or gave, a
hortatory subjunctive transferred to
past time.
I6. paucis, a ?i???e.
I 7. erat, 7/iere zwould be.
The
22 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
mane, diem totum stertebat.
Nil fuit umquam
sic impar sibi. — Nunc aliquis dicat mihi: “ Quid tu
nullane habes vitia ?'
Immo alia et fortasse minora. 2o
Maenius absentem Novium cum carperet, * Heus tu,'
quidam ait, * ignoras te, an ut ignotum dare nobis
verba putas ? ' * Egomet mi ignosco,' Maenius inquit.
Stultus et improbus hic amor est, dignüsque notari.
Cum tua pervideas oculis mala lippus inunctis, 25
construction is similar to the gene-
ral condition. In present time it
would be, ** Give him a million; in
ten days there is nothing,” etc., as
a general character of the man. —
noctis vigilabat, /èe zwozzâa? zwazc/.
z/ae /zig/zz % roag/,.
I 8. nil, ?zo ome. The use of the
neuter in this way is very common
to make the statement more univer-
sal.
I9. impar, ìm consistemt. — nunc
aliquis, etc.: here the poet turns
to the proper subject of the satire,
representing some person who
hears him as becoming indignant
at this abuse of Tigellius, and ask-
ing if he himself is free from faults,
that he is thus severe upon amother.
He thus shows that his abuse is an
example of what he satirizes. —
quid tu : sc. agis; but the expres-
sion has become idiomatic, and the
verb is lost sight of. Trans. Hozy
about yourseJf?
2O. immo alia, o/a, mo (I do not
say that), ôzuz differemz omes. — et
fortasse minora: best assigned
with the two preceding words to
Horace, though by some they are
given to the interlocutor.
2I. Maenius, etc. : Horace, as
usual, illustrates his meaning by an
example. — heus tu, loo here, my
friemd.
22. quidam, ome, some ome, a
mamz. Cf. aliquis, v. I9. The
difference is that in the former mo
definite person is conceived of,
while here a particular person is
meant, though not described or.
identified. — ut ignotum (sc. te),
as a stramger zo zzs, or as áfzwe diamz'z
Aëm?οτω yoze, í. e. ** Is it ignorance of
your own character, or the hope of
deceiving us, that leads you to at-
tack another man's faults, when
you have so many of your own?”
— dare verba, deceâz/e, ìmpose
zzροm, a commom colloquial expres-
SlOIl.
23. egomet, etc.: the naive an-
swer of Mænius shows the disposi-
tion which Horace is attacking, and
serves as a text for the following. —
improbus, consciem ce/ess.
24. amor, se?/-/ove.— notari, zo öe
censured. The construction is poetic
or colloquial, for which Ciceroniam
prose would require ut or qui
with the subjunctive. The meaning
of the word comes from the mark
(mota) which the censor in making
up the rolls affixed to the name of
any person whom he wished to
remove from his position for mis-
conduct.
25. lippus inunctis, zwit/ 3/ozzr
δ/ear eyes daubea, zwit/ eye-salve.
One is tempted to make in negative
in inunctis, as if the mam had weak
eyes and did mot care to put on the
usual remedy. But there seems to
be no authority for this.
III. 18—36.]
HORATI SERMONES. 23
cur in amicorum vitiis tam cernis acutum
quam aut aquila aut serpens Epidaurius ? At tibi contra
evenit, inquirant vitia ut tua rursus et illi.
Iracundior est paulo, minus aptus acutis
naribus horum hominum ; rideri possit eo, quod 3O
rusticius tonso toga defluit, et male laxus
in pede calceus haeret : at est bonus, ut melior vir
non alius quisquam, at tibi amicus, at ingenium ingens
inculto latet hoc sub corpore.
Denique te ipsum
\ J/ , --— . - '• es* • . & *** •* ' ` • �
concute, num qua tibi vitiorum inseverit olim 35
natura, aut etiam consuétudo mala; namque
27. Epidaurius: the serpent
was a special symbol of the worship
of Æsculapius, and was often iden-
tified with the god himself. It was
in this form that the god was sup-
posed to have come from Epidaurus
to Rome, where a temple was built
to him on the island in the Tiber.
The serpent was famous for keen
vision (cf. the name δράκων), and
was supposed to possess prophetic
powers. The connection here is
probably only from Horace's favor-
ite way of giving an individual in-
stead of a class, and there is no
special reference to this particular
AEsculapius serpent.
28. rursus et illi, z/iey zoo imo
zzz/r/z, i.e. those you criticise.
29. iracundior, quicÃ-temperea,
an example of a case where injustice
is dome by this criticism, inasmuch
as the subject of it cannot, like most
mem, disregard it, but is angered by
it. — minus aptus: î. e. he has
a quick temper impatient of criti-
cism. — acutis naribus, f/èe àeemz
crificisma, the figure derived from
the natural turning up of the nose
in fastidious disgust. (Cf. I. 4. 8,
and I. 6. 5.)
3o. horum, of our day, when
this fault is so common.
3 I. rusticius tonso: with his
hair in rustic style. — toga: the
Romans paid the utmost attention
to the set of the toga, plaiting it in
folds which were secured in a fixed
position. This requirement of fash-
ion the man neglects, letting his
toga fall loosely and awry. — male
1axus, loose and i//-fittimg.
32. at est bonus, etc.: î. e. he
has all these good qualities, which
are lost sight of in this over-fastidi-
ous criticism.
34. denique, etc. : î. e. in short,
learn tolerance of such minor faults
by self-examination, through which
you will very likely find that you
have some as well.
35. concute : the figure derived
from shaking out the loose garments
of the ancients for purposes of
search. We should say search your
pockets or the like. — olim, az
am y fime. — inseverit : by chang-
ing the voice the order of words and
ideas may be kept in English.
36. namque : introducing the
reason for saying consuetudo as
well as natura. Even if one is free
from bad habits by nature, it may
happen that they have grown up
unawares, like weeds in neglected
ground.
24 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
neglectis urenda filix innascitur agris.
Illuc praevertamur: amatorem quod amicae
turpia decipiunt caecum vitia, aut etiam ipsa haec
delectant, veluti Balbinum polypus Hagnae : 4O
vellem in amicitia sic erraremus, et isti
errori nomen virtus posuisset honestum.
At pater ut gnati, sic nos debemus amici
si quod sit vitium non fastidire ; strabonem
appellat paeta///z pater, et pa///a///?, male parvus 45
si cui filius est, ut abortivus fuit olim
Sisyphus ; hunc varum distortis cruribus ; illum
balbutit scaurum pravis fultum male talis.
• 37. urenda, zo be burmedzwit/ fire.
38. illuc, zo this poêmt, referring,
as often in Latin, to what follows.
— praevertamur, Zez us zzrm, in
preference to any other subject.
39. decipiunt, escape z/ìe motice
Qf. Cf. fallo.
4o. Balbinum : nothingis known
of this case, but it explains itself.
4I. vellem : notice that the wish
is contrary to the actual fact.
42. virtus : î. e. philosophers in
their discussions on virtue. The
Stoics are particularly referred to,
whose high ideal of virtue and tem-
dency to puritanism apparently
made them especially inclined to
censoriousness, and against_whom
Horace never loses an opportunity
to break a lance. Cf. v. 96 ez seq. —
honestum : the Stoic made “ the
loecoming,” Tò Trpétrov, i.e. what was
in accordance with the nature of
man and the universe, the criterion
of virtue. Of this expression ho-
nestum is the Latin translation,
and the word is here used with
reference to this technical sense.
Hence it means zwirzazous, but as
virtus is best translated wi/rfue, we
may translate honorab/e. At any
rate, the whole means, that Ethics
had reckoned this among the vir-
tues, which of course in the Stoic
school it could not do.
43. gnati, τωά λόs som, changing
the construction to keep the em-
phasis and the order of the words.
44. fastidire, όe zoo c7rázáca Z. —
strabonem : the point of the pas-
sage lies in the fact that the de-
scriptive words, most of which are
real Roman mames, are of two
classes, the first denoting am exces-
sive degree of the quality referred
to, amd the second a slight degree,
with which latter class the fond
father nicknames his son. — strabo-
nem, /js ** cocÄ-eyed'*' som. All the
names should be given in Latin
with the translation.
45. appellat: cf. Lucr. IV. I I6O.
— paetum, B/ima/3y. — pullum,
Chicky. — male, zw7retched/y.
47. Sisyphus: a famous dwarf,
kept by Mark Antony. Such per-
sons were very common in the
suites of the Roman nobles, acting
as jesters. — varum, /i/t/e Ba/záy-
/egs.
48. balbutit, ca?/s âm, childis/.
accents. — scaurum, /itt/e Stumpy,
properly with misshapen ankles. —
male, sadZy (with pravis).
III. 37—63.]
HORATI SERMONES. 25
Parcius hic vivit, frugâ dicatur.
Ineptus
et iactantior hic paulo est, concómmus amicis 5o
postulat ut videatur.
At est truculentior atque
plus aequo liber ; simplex fortásque habeatur.
Caldior est ; acrìs inter numeretur.
Opinor,
haec res et iungit, iunctos et servat amicos.
At nos virtutes ipsas invertimus, atque 55
sincerum cupimus vas incrustare.
Probus quis
nobiscum vivit, multum demissus homo ; illi
tardo cognomen pám gazâ damus.
Hic fugit omnis
insidias nullique malo latus obdit apertum,
cum genus hoc inter vitae versetur, ubi acris 6o
invidia atque vigent ubi crimina ; pro bene sano
ac non incauto fictum ast///////2que vocamus.
Simplicior quis et est, qualem me saepe libenter
49. parcius: in the same way
the moral qualities are expressed
by two sets of epithets, one exag-
gerating, the other extenuatimg, the
fault. — frugi, f/ìrìfèy. — ineptus,
am ass ; strictly, wanting in the
sense of propriety, and so putting
himself forward in the manner which
we speak of as ** making an ass of
one'sself.” (Cf. Cic. de Or. II. 4. I 7.)
5o. iactantior, forward. — con-
cinnus, agreeable, ì. e. making an
effort to be prominent in amusing
one's friends.
52. liber, free-spokem. — sim-
plex, framÂ. — fortis, fearless, not
afraid to speak his mind.
53. acris, high-spirited.— opinor,
/famcy, / ta/ée iz, with its cognates
used of a mere notion not thoroughly
thought out or well-founded, though
of course it may be true.
55. invertimus, distorz; lit. tip
them upside down so as to make
vices of them.
56. sincerum, etc. : the figure is
derived from the tartar which forms
on the inside of a wine-jar. — cupi-
mus, zwe are eager, always a strong-
er word than volo, etc. — probus
quis, some good /ionest, etc., as an
honorable epithet, but with a sug-
gestion of want of spirit. Cf. si/Zy
(originally good'), bomhomme, good-
^aazured, and New-England clezyer,
as well as the translation suggested.
57. multum, modifying demis-
sus, a colloquial use. Cf. Pl. Aulul.
II. I. 5. — demissus, modesz and
zz/zasszzmz?/2g.
58. tardo, pingui, stupid amd
dul/. The text authority for illi,
and the parallelism of the following
clauses, indicate that this is the true
meaming, in spite of many objec-
tions that cam be made.
59. nulli malo, zo meo mam's /aos-
zi?e thrusz. — malo, masculine.
6o. cum genus, etc. : giving the
reason and excuse for the caution.
61. vigent, are rìfe. — sano, a
Jez/e/-/,eaded 172a m.
63. simplicior, thought/ess, ouz-
spoÂen, — et, agaázz.
26 HORATI SERMONES. [LIB. I.
obtulerim tibi, Maecenas, ut forte legentem
aut tacitum impellat quovis sermone ; * Mo/estus ; 65
communì sensa, p/ane caret,' inquimus.
Eheu,
quam temere in nosmet legem sancimus iniquam !
Nam vitiis nemo sine nascitur ; optimus ille est
qui minimis urgetur.
Amicus dulcis, ut aequum est,
cum mea compenset vitiis bona; pluribus hisce 7o
(si modo plura mihi bona sunt) inclinet, amari
si volet ; hac lege in trutina ponetur eadem.
Qui ne tuberibus propriis offendat amicum
postulat, ignoscet verrucis illius ; aequum est
peccatis veniam poscentem reddere rursus. 75
Denique, quatenus excidi penitus vitium irae,
cetera item nequeunt stultis haerentia, cur non
ponderibus modulisque suis ratio utitur, ac res
ut quaeque est, ita suppliciis delicta coercet ?
Si quis eum servum, patinam qui tollere iussus 8o
65. tacitum, in si/emz z/.ozght. —
quovis sermone : taken with im-
pellat. Probably molestus also
belongs in the same clause, but it
makes very good sense with the
following, %e bore, /;e zs abso/ute/y,
etc.
66. communi sensu : the uni-
versal feeling belonging to mankind
of the fitness of things, semse of pro-
príe£y.
67. temere, thoug/iz/ess/y. — san-
cimus, set up. — iniquam, Âars/è
ama' mum/èi/zd.
7o. cum mea, etc.: set off my
good qualities agaims?, etc.
7I. amari si volet, £f he zwishes
7/ze zo /oz/e /277/z.
72. hac 1ege, om £/, is conditiom,
zÀese 7e7r///s. — in trutina, etc.,
zweighed in the same öa/amce.
73. tuberibus, verrucis, zwarts
(properly zwems), pi//z//es, reducing
the scale somewhat, but keeping
the proportion. The Romans seem
to have been very subject to wens
and similar excrescences of larger
size to which we are not liable.
75. poscentem, for ome as&img.
— reddere (sc. veniam) rursus,
zo remder z/ie /i£e agaim.
76. quatenus : cf. I. I. 64. —
irae : perhaps this fault is chosen
because it is regarded as not neces-
sarily a vice, but possibly a virtue,
by the Peripatetics.
77. stultis : here in its technical
meaming, as opposed to sapiens,
the ideal (and, as Horace would
intimate, impossible) Stoic sage.
78. ponderibus, etc.: here first
crops out plainly the opposition to
the Stoic school, of which Horace
is thinking doubtless throughout,
though he has not till now clearly
referred to it. Cf. v. 96.
79. coercet suppliciis, zásáz zw?//.
punishm emt.
III, 64—94.]
HORATI SERMONES. 27
semesos piscis tepidumque ligurrierit ius
in cruce suffigat, Labeone insanior inter
sanos dicatur.
Quanto hoc furiosius atque
maius peccatum est: paulum deliquit amicus,
quod nisi concedas, habeare insuavis, acerbus: 85
odisti, et fugis ut Rusonem debitor aeris,
qui nisi, cum tristes misero venere Kalendae,
mercedem aut nummos undeunde extricat, amaras
porrecto iugulo historias captivus ut audit.
Comminxit lectum potus, mensave catillum 9O
Evandri manibus tritum deiecit : ob hanc rem,
aut positum ânte mea quia pullüm in parte catini
sustulit esuriens, minus hoc iucundus amicus •
sit mihi ? Quid faciam si furtum fecerit, aut si
8I. ligurrierit, goόδ/e up, a very
common offence of slaves every-
where. Cf. “ Massa's nigger, Mas-
sa's meat,” an old negro saying.
82. in cruce, the common way
of punishing slaves with death. —
Labeone : it is not known what
Labeo is referred to, but it is enough
to guess that either his was a well-
known case of insanity, or that
Horace, as often, gives him a thrust
in passing in regard to some con-
duct which would bear the appear-
ance of a craze. -
85. acerbus, e///bitterea, along
with insuavis after habeare.
86. ut Rusonem, etc., as fhe
^mam thaz ozves him momey does
Aëzuso, evidently a usurer who had
unsuccessful literary aspirations in
the line of history. This is another
of Horace's side thrusts.
87. Kalendae : the first of the
month was the- most common day
for payment.
88. mercedem, fhe imferest. —
nummîos, z/ae momey, i.e. the prin-
cipal. — extricat, scraffes together.
— amaras, drea7y.
89. porrecto, etc.: the position
for execution, as of a prisoner of
war awaiting his doom, a situation
which Horace no doubt has in his
mind in his description of the poor
man bored to death. It is, how-
ever, only a kind of passing thought
of his, and not to be insisted on too
strongly. -
9o. potus, in his cups.
9I. Evandri: there are two pos-
sible explanations of this name,
either as a famous potter, in which
case the dish is valuable for its in-
' trinsic excellence ; or as the ancient
king, in which case there is a hu-
morous indication of its age. The
second seems the better. Cf. II. 3. 2I.
92. mea in parte catini: there
is no indication that the Romans
used plates as we do. They no
doubt Tate with their fingers from
small dishes on the table which
stood in the centre of the triclinium.
93. esuriens, im /is / tumger. —
minus hoc iucundus, etc.: ?.e.
** Shall I renounce his friendship?”
Q4. furtum fecerit, the technical
phrase.
28 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
prodiderit commissa fide sponsumve negarit ? 95
Quis paria esse fere placuit peccata, laborant
cum ventum ad verum est ; sensus moresque repugnant
atque ipsa utilitas, iusti prope mater et aequi.
Cum prorepserunt primis animalia terris,
mutum et turpe pecus, glandem atque cubilia propter Ioo
unguibus et pugnis, dein fustibus, atque ita porro
pugnabant armis, quae post fabricaverat usus,
donec verba, quibus voces sensusque notarent,
95. commissa fide (dat.), a
zrust. The two classes of offences
are of course made as different in
enormity as possible, to bring out
more fully the absurdity of the
Stoic paradox in v. 96.
96. quis : the constant use of this
old form in the satires is an indica-
tiom of their colloquial character. —
The connection of thought is :
Such offences are recognized as
of different magnitude by every
one, and though the Stoic may
preach in theory the paradox paria,
etc., as an answer to Horace's wiew,
yet when we come to real life (ad
verum), he gets into trouble.
97. sensus, our /ee/imgs, our sense
of right and wrong, almost equal
to ** instincts '° or ** conscience.” —
mores, Âabzzs, our customary mode
oflife.—repugnant, rebel, or protest.
98. utilitas, uti/izy (as a techni-
cal philosophical term), or se?fis/,
advamtage, i.e. the selfish interests
of mankind, from which, he goes
om to say, the ideas of right and
wrong have risen through the mak-
img of laws to protect these interests.
99. cum prorepserunt, etc. :
the doctrine of the development of
society, in accordance generally
with the notions of the ancients as
to the origin of man, but espe-
cially of the Epicurean school. Cf.
Lucretius, V. 78o seq. The chief
point is, that the law of the strongest
alone obtained at the outset, though
the Stoic would perhaps not admit
that right did not exist because the
inhabitants of the earth were not
able or inclined to practise it. The
argument is, however, not the mere
setting of one dogma against anoth-
er, but an explanation of utilitas
iusti mater in accordance with
what was in the main the generally
received opinion. •
IOO. mutum, a'u//zó, speec/i/ess,
and so unable to defend his rights
in any other way than by fighting.
— turpe, S/ape/ess, ?z//szgλ?/y, in
accord with the Epicurean notion
of development from lower animals.
— glandem atque cubilia : ì.e.
for food and lodging, to supply
their natural wants from Nature's
store in which there was as yet no
individual property.
IOI. unguibus, etc.: not having
learned to make better weapons. —
fustibus: one step in advance, at
least an acquired, not a natural,
weapon. — atque ita porro, etc. :
and so they went om, till experience
taught them the manufacture of
arms. But still there could be no
society and no rights until they
invented language, which made
association possible.
Io3. verba nominaque, zwords
(to express ideas) ama' mam^es (to
assign to things). — voces sensus-
que, almost equal to ideas and sen-
III. 95— I I 8.]
HORATI SERMONES. 29
nominaque invenere ; dehinc absistere bello,
oppida coeperunt munire et ponere leges, Io5
ne quis fur esset, neu latro, neu quis adulter.
Nam fuit ante Helenam cunnus taeterrima belli
causa ; sed ignotis perierunt mortibus illi,
quos venerem incertam rapientis more ferarum
viribus editior caedebat, ut in grege taurus. IIO
Iura inventa metu iniusti fateare necesse est,
tempora si fastosque velis evolvere mundi.
Nec natura potest iusto secernere iniquum,
dividit ut bona diversis, fugienda petendis ;
nec vincet ratio hoc, tantundem ut peccet idemque 115
qui teneros caules alieni fregerit horti,
et qui nocturnus sacra divom legerit. Adsit
regula, peccatis quae poenas inroget aequas,
sa/ioms, î. e. predications and con-
ceptions.
IO4. dehinc, etc. : z.e. as soon as
language made associatIon possible,
they exchanged a state of war for
mutual rights and individual prop-
erty, in order peaceably to satisfy
their primal appetites, and protect
themselves in the possession of the
means for this satisfaction.
Io7. nam fuit, etc.: explanatory
of neu quis adulter. For lust
must have caused war long before
the famous case of Helen, but as
marriages were mot established, no
rights were violated, and the wars
were never celebrated in song.
Io9. venerem incertam rapi-
entis, satìs/yimg òy z/io/epace un-
regulatea passiom.
I IO. editior, f/ae superìor. —
caedebat, fel? at f/ae /amds of, or
zvere s?a??z ôy.
I I I. imiusti : neuter, cf. iusto,
vv. I I3 and 98.
I I 2. tempora, histo7y (in its
chronological developinent). — fas-
tos, recora's(in chronological order).
I I3. natura, ?.e. ?/.e natura? ìm-
szám czs, distinguishing by means of
the senses.
I I4. bona diversis, good ?/iimgs
from their opposites, speaking in
reference to the natural instincts
which are supposed to teach living
creatures through the senses what
is good for them. — fugienda
petendis, £himgs to öe shummed
from oòjects of desire, used in the
same sense as the preceding, but
more technical.
I I 5. vincet, zvil? maimtaim, with
hoc as a cognate accusative. — tan-
tundem et idem, in the same degree
d/za, Â ámd.
I 17. legerit, stea/s, an old sense
preserved in legal phrase, and also
in sacrilegus.
I I 8. regula, a s/iding sca/e,
properly a straight-edge. — inro-
get, im/ict, the use of the word
being derived from punishment in-
flicted by the vote of the people, to
whom, by early Roman custom, was
submitted (rogare) the bill for the
pumishment of offenders.
30 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
ne scutica dignum horribili sectere flagello.
Nam, üt ferula caedas meritum maiora subire I2O
verbera, non vereor, cum dicas esse pares res
furta latrociniis, et magnis parva mineris
falce recisurum simili te, si tibi regnum .
permittant homines.
Si dives qui sapiens est,
et sutor bonus et solus formosus et est rex, I25
cur optas quod habes ?
* Non nosti quid pater,' inquit,
* Chrysippus dicat : “ Sapiens crepidas sibi numquam
I I9. scutica, z/ie zw/jp, an in-
strument of whipping more severe
than the rod (ferula), and less so
than the scourge (flagellum),
which last had pieces of metal
attached to its lashes.
I2o. ut caedas: the regular
grammar requires ne (as the clause
must be affirmative), and no ex-
planation of the irregularity is satis-
factory. Perhaps Horace allows
himself a popular construction, î. e. a
mistake in grammar. The meaning
of course is, ** I say the rule is
needed to prevent too great severity,
for there is no fear that the Stoic
principle will lead to too great in-
dulgence.” A similar use of ut
occurs in Livy, 28. 22, where, as
here, the ut clause precedes.
I 22. furta, without violence. —
latrociniis, accompanied by force.
The same distinction exists between
z/ae/? and robbery. — magnis, with
simili (cf. ** hair like the Graces*').
I 23. falce, etc.: î. e. punishment,
regarded as a pruning away of
the vices of the State. — tibi: ì.e.
the Stoic, against whom the whole
argument is aimed, and against
whose follies and unfitness for so-
cial life the remainder of the satire
is directed. The transition is af-
forded by the words which Horace
quotes, as it were from the Stoic :
** I would prune away, etc., if men
would make me king,” implying a
wish to be so (hence optas, v. I 26).
Horace then replies, ** According
to your doctrine, you are a king
already.'' To which the Stoic re-
plies, “The Stoic doctrine is not
that a sapiems is an actual king, but
only a king im posse.” Thus the
Stoic shows the inapplicability of
his own doctrines to actual life,
which is the effect Horace wishes
to produce, in order to nullify the
excuse which the Stoic views give
for censoriousness and harshness.
I 24. si dives, etc. : the Stoic
paradox is, ότι μόvos δ σοφὸs Tλού-
αιos, so/um sapientem esse divitem.
See Cic. Aaradox, VI.
I 25. sutor: alluding to the per-
fection of the sapiems in all direc-
tions, but containing in itself a re-
ductio ad absurdum. — formosus:
of course the perfect man must
possess perfect physical beauty
among his other perfections. —
rex: according to the Stoic doc-
trine, the sapiens is king, and ail
others are slaves. (Cf. Ep. I. I.
Io6.)
I 26. pater, f/ie venerable.
I 27. Chrysippus: the second
great expounder of the Stoic views,
so famous that it was said, ei μῖ}
^yàp ìv Xpùoruttros, oùk άν ήν Στοd. —
sapiens, etc.: the Stoic is repre-
sented as explaining the doctrine of
the existence in perfection of all
qualities in the sapiems by a ridicu-
III. I I9-142.]
HORATI SERMONES. 31
nec soleas fecit, sutor tamen est sapiens.''' Qui ?
* Ut, quamvis tacet Hermogenes, cantor tamen atque
optimus est modulator ; ut Alfenus vafer, omni I3O
* *-*-»*
abiectò instrumento ârtis clausaque taberna,
sutor erat; sapiens operis sic optimus omnis
est opifex solus, sic rex.'
Vellunt tibi barbam
lascivi pueri; quos tu nisi fuste coerces,
urgeris turba circum te stante, miserque I35
rumperis, et latras, magnorum maxime regum !
Ne longum faciam : dum tu quadrante lavatum
rex ibis, neque te quisquam stipator ineptum
praeter Crispinum sectabitur, et mihi dulces
ignoscent, si quid peccaro stultus, amici, - I4O
inque vicem illorum patiar delicta libenter,
privatusque magis vivam te rege beatus.
lous example, thus, of course, be-
1ittling the argument.
I 29. Hermogenes, the
person referred to in 2. 3.
I3o. Alfenus: no doubt a side
hit at a rich usurer, probably, who
… had once been a cobbler, said to be
from Cremona, now dead.
I33. vellunt, etc.: the meaning
is, “ Well, enjoy your imaginary
royalty (i.e. your Stoic doctrine
which makes you a king), and re-
ject the elegances of social life;
appear as a philosopher in the
streets to be the butt of the street-
boys, and howl at the vices of man-
kind till you burst. Meanwhile I,
adopting a more accommodating
doctrine, will enjoy the pleasures of
social intercourse, indulging my
friends with charity, and being in-
dulged in return.” — barbam : the
long beard, no doubt from adher-
ence to an old fashion, but perhaps
also as indicating want of care of
the person, was generally charac-
teristic of philosophers, especially
of the Cynics and Stoics.
S3 IÌl e
I 34. fuste : the philosopher reg-
ularly carried a staff, probably fol-
lowing the old fashion.
I 35. urgeris : to the stately
Roman nothing could be more in-
sulting than to be hustled in the
crowd, and the picture is intended
to show the degrading contrast
between his royalty and his actual
life. -
I 36. rumperis, yozz ôzarsz zw??/.
7rage. — latras, hozw/, i.e. at the
crowd. There is a special reference
to the Cynics, so called from κύων.
I 37. quadrante, a fart/, i mg ; ì.e.
you go to the common bath instead
of enjoying the luxuries of the
rich.
I 38. stipator, compa???o/z, the
regular word for a person belong-
ing to an escort or suite, either as a
friend or a satellite. — ineptum :
with Crispinum.
I 39. Crispinum : cf. I. I2o. —
et, correlative with -que, v. I4I. —
dulces, Âïmdly.
I4I. patiar, ptzt zzp zvá?/.
I42. te : in prose quam tu.
32 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
IV.
Eupolis atque Cratinus Aristophanesque poetae,
atque alii, quorum comoedia prisca virorum est,
si quis erat dignus describi, quod malus ac fur,
quod moechus foret aut sicarius aut alioqui
famosus, multa cum libertate notabant. 5
Hinc omnis pendet Lucilius, hosce secutus
mutatis tantum pedibus numerisque, facetus,
emunctae naris, durus componere versus.
Mam fuit hoc vitiosus: in hora saepe ducentos,
ut magnum, versus dictabat stans pede in uno; IO
cum flueret lutulentus, erat quod tollere velles ;
garrulus atque piger scribendi ferre laborem,
scribendi recte ; nam ut multum, nil moror. — Ecce,
SATIRE 4. An answer to Hor-
ace's critics, and defence of his
form of composition.
I. Eupolis, etc.: he begins with
the origin of satire, connecting it
with the Old Comedy of Athens,
of which the three names men-
tioned are the greatest.
2. prisca: used technically of
the Old Comedy, which introduced
actual persons upon the stage in
order to cast ridicule upom them.
5. notabant, stigmatized. See
3. 24.
6. hinc = ab his. — pendet,
sprìmzgs, î. e. he is an imitation of
them, amd so hangs om them, or is
supported by them. (Cf. * On these
two commandments hang all the
law and the prophets.”)
7. pedibus : using the hexame-
ter instead of the iambic measure.
— numeris, 7/zeas2z7res, the same
idea in another form.
8. emunctae naris, of Aeeem
sense, lit. with his mose free from
obstruction, so that his scent is
keen. — durus, etc. : it would seem
that his critics had compared him
with Lucilius to his disadvantage,
and he proceeds to state the defects
of that poet.
IO. ut magnum, as a grea?
feat, ì. e. he regarded easy and
rapid composition as the great ob-
ject to be attained in art, rather
than elegance and polish. — pede
in uno: proverbial, not changing
his position (just as we say ** at a
stretch *°) from one foot to the
other.
I I. flueret lutulentus, λzzrriea'
omz zwi//. /u/rò id, /Zozv. — tollere : the
figure is of a freshet carrying all
sorts of foreign matter in its course,
much of which is worthless, and so
ought to be removed. (But cf.
Quintil. X. I. 94.)
12. garrulus, word y.
I 3. ut multum : sc. scripserit.
— nil moror: a colloquial expres-
sion for ** I don't care,'° ** I don't
mind.” — ecce, etc. : to show his
disregard of' rapidity in writing,
Iv. 1-25.]
HORATI SERMONES. 33
Crispinus minimo me provocat: “ Accipe, si vis,
accipiam tabulas ; detur nobis locus, hora, I5
custodes ; videamus uter plus scribere possit.'
* Di bene fecerunt, inopis me quodque pusilli
finxerunt animi, raro et perpauca loquentis ;
at tu conclusas hircinis follibus auras, •
usque laborantis dum ferrum molliat ignis, 2O
ut mavis, imitare.'
Eeatus Fannius, ultro
delatis capsis et imagine, cum mea nemo
scripta legat, volgo recitare timentis ob hanc rem,
quod sunt quos genus hoc minime iuvat, utpote pluris
culpari dignos. Quemvis media elige~turba : 25
Horace represents a challenge to
himself from the loquacious moral-
izer Crispinus (see I. I2O) to show
his skill in writing. At the same
time he disparages this branch of
skill by making a poetaster like
Crispinus excel him in it.
I4. minimo, at great odas, lit.
with a very Small wager on my part.
I 7. di bene, etc.: an expression
of thankfulness, — Horace's answer
to Crispinus' challenge. — inopis,
pusilli animi, zwit/ am zzmfiroduc-
tive (opp. to copiosi) and unas-
pîrîmg (opp. to magni) i/z/e//ect. —
quodque, etc. : the full construction
would be quod inopis, quodque
pusilli, etc. The expression of the
second quod with -que, thus imply-
ing the first, is almost a mannerism
with Horace. Cf. v. I I 5.
I 8. raro, in reference to pusilli,
perpauca, in reference to inopis,
spea/éîmg 7ra7re/y, amd z/e/y /itt/e az
zλαz.
2o. 1aborantis, puffî/ag away. —
dum ferrum, etc.: only to com-
plete the picture.
2I. imitare, imperative. — Fan-
nius, a poet of the clique opposed
to Horace, but otherwise unknown.
The sense is, “ Happy the popular
poet, like Fannius, whose admirers
present him, etc.” The poet now
turns from the criticism of Lucilius
to a discussion of the difference be-
tween himself and the popular poets
of the day, and explains why he is
not popular.
22. delatis capsis et imagine :
the natural meaning would be ** with
his writings and bust deposited ” in
some public place, as a library, for
instance. It would seem, however,
that there was no public library
until the one established by Pollio,
and in that there was no bust of a
living author but that of Varro.
The best meaning, perhaps, is pre-
semated? zviz/, etc.
22. nemo : opposed to the pop-
ularity of Fannius, as indicated by
the preceding act of his admirers.
23. legat, reads, by himself. —
recitare: the regular word for
public reading, which was the com-
mon method at that time of bringing
out an author's works. — tinentis,
agreeing with the genitive implied
in mea.
24. genus hoc, ì. e. satire. —
pluris, zhe greater part. In English
we must supply a verb, but the Latin
construction is a kind of apposition.
34 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
aut ob avaritiam aut misera ambitione laborat ;
hic nuptarum insanit amoribus, hic puerorum ;
hunc capit argenti splendor ; stupet Albius aere ;
hic mutat merces surgente a sole ad eum quo
vespertina tepet regio, quin per mala praeceps 3O
fertur, uti pulvis collectus turbine, ne quid
summa deperdat metuens aut ampliet ut rem.
omnes hi metuunt versus, odere poetas.
* Faenum habet in cornu, longe fuge; dummodo risum
`excutiat sibi, non hic cuiquam parcet amico; 35
et quodcumque semel chartis illeverit, omnis
gestiet a furno redeuntis scire lacuque
et pueros et anus.'
Agedum, pauca accipe contra.
Primum ego me illorum dederim quibus esse poetas
excerpam numero : neque enim concludere versum 4o
dixeris esse satis ; neque si quis scribat, uti nos,
sermoni propriora, putes hunc esse poetam.
Ingenium cui sit, cui mens divinior atque os
26. laborat, is frouö/ed with, a
regular word for diseases.
28. hunc capit, is captivafed (as
better English). — stupet, is dazed
όγ the beauty o/, i.e. has an admira-
tion which amounts to a craze.
29. hic mutat, etc.: i.e. voyages `
as a trader to the farthest East and
the farthest West.
30. mala, dam gers, sufferìmgs.
32. ampliet ut, here in the
proper meaning of the construction,
zλαέ λe 7/zay moz, etc.
33. metuunt: because they are
conscious of being proper subjects
of satire.
34. faenum, etc. : a mark of
dangerous cattle. It may be trans-
lated literally, or, abandoning the
details of the figure, by, He's a
z/icious brute. — longe fuge, Aeeep
zwe/? avvay from /iim, like ** give
him a wide berth.”
37. a furno redeuntis, etc. : î. e.
the common crowd in the street, as
they went to get bread or water,
things which the better classes
would provide in their own houses.
These errands were no doubt occa-
sions for gossip.
39. primum ego me, etc. : î. e.
first, Horace doesm't claim to be a
poet, so that the rules of the art of
poetry don't apply to him. He
thus avoids criticism as to his style.
4o. concludere versum, 7rozuma?
Qff verses, î. e. make metrical lines
by bringing them to a proper con-
clusion.
41. dixeris: an apodosis, but the
indefinite second persom singular
regularly has the subjunctive.
42. sermoni, conversation.
43. ingenium, talemz. — mens
divinior, am inspired gemizzs. — os .
magna sonaturum, a gra/aa' and
IV. 26—59.]
HORATI SERMONES. 35
magna sonaturum, des nominis huius honorem.
Idcirco quidam comoedia necne poema 45
esset quaesivere, quod acer spiritus ac vis
nec verbis nec rebus inest, nisi quod pede certo
differt sermoni, sermo merus.
* At pater ardens
saevit, quod meretrice nepos insanus amica
filius uxorem grandi cum dote recuset, 5o
ebrius et, magnum quod dedecus, ambulet ante
noctem cum facibus.'
audiret leviora, pater si viveret ?
Numquid Pomponius istis
Ergo
non satis est puris versum perscribere verbis,
quem si dissolvas, quivis stomachetur eodem 55
quo personatus pacto pater.
His, ego quae nunc,
olim quae scripsit Lucilius, eripias si
tempora certa modosque, et quod prius ordine verbum est
posterius facias, praeponens ultima primis,
/ofèy szyle. As all poetry was origi-
mally to be sung, the Latin retaims
figures in reference to its style de-
rived from sound which we have lost.
45. quidam : the Alexandrine
grammarians.
46. acer spiritus, a /ive/y ìm-
spiration.
47. verbis, imo the dicfìom. — re-
bus, ìm the matter. — pede certo,
δy its fixed ///easure.
48. sermo, in apposition with
comoedia. — at pater, etc.: the
objection of ome who maintains that
comedy has passages of poetry in
it. A very common scene in com-
edy is that of the angry father under
the circumstances here referred to.
49. nepos, spema'%?rí/?, used as
an adjective.
5 I. ambulet: a common form of
revelry was the comissazio, in which
the drinkers after a supper paraded
through the city with torches, com-
mitting all sorts of wild disorder.
Here it is done even before night,
the intoxicated youth doing it with-
out shame in broad daylight.
52. numquid PJ111pu11ius, elu..
the reply is that amy dissolute young
man would be addressed in the same
way in real life ; but to express this
Horace takes an actual case of a
young man of this kind, thus satir-
izing him as well as making out his
own point. These side thrusts are
very characteristic of the poet.
53. ergo: the reasoning is, if
comedy has only the language of
real life, it cannot be called poetry
though put into metrical form.
55. dissolvas, ì.e. change the
order so that the metre disappears.
Cf. v. 6o.
56. his, etc.: in the same way
Lucilius and Horace use only the
language of common conversation
put into metre; whereas in the ex-
tract from Ennius in v. 6o, there is
a poetic diction, and the thoughts
suggested are on a higher plane
than the language of common life.
36 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
non, ut si solvas * Postquam Discordia taetra 6o
όe//? ferrazos poszás portasque refregit,'
invenias etiam disiecti membra poetae.
Hactenus haec : alias iustum sit necne poema,
nunc illud tantum quaeram, meritone tibi sit
suspectum genus hoc scribendi.
Sulcius acer 65
ambulat et Caprius, rauci male cumque libellis,
magnus uterque timor latronibus ; at bene si quis
et vivat puris manibus, contemnat utrumque.
Ut sis tu similis Caeli Birrique latronum,
non ego sum Capri neque Sulci: cur metuas me ? 7o
Nulla taberna meos habeat neque pila libellos,
quis manus insudet volgi Hermogenisque Tigelli :
nec recito cuiquam nisi amicis, idque coactus,
non ubivis coramve quibuslibet.
In medio qui
scripta foro recitent sunt multi, quique lavantes : 75
suave locus voci resonat conclusus.
Inanis
hoc iuvat, haud illud quaerentis, num sine sensu,
tempore num faciant alieno.
62. etiam, s/il/.
63. hactenus haec, so mzzzc/è for
that poëmt. — iustum, properly, ?.e.
according to the rights and laws of
poetry.
64. suspectum, ziewed wit/, szzs-
pìcìona, an allusion to v. 24.
65. Sulcius, etc.: the idea is that
those informers who plied a trade
in bringing accusations are a terror
only to evil-doers, and one would
expect the argument to continue :
if you are honest men, you have no
reason to fear me; but instead of
that the póèt turns sharply, and says
in v. 69, “Though you have all the
vices of the worst mem, still you need
not fear me, for I am no informer.”
66. ambulat, zwalks abroad. —
rauci, â.e. with pleading. — libellis,
z/aeimr indiczmzemzs.
* Laedere gaudes,'
7 I. nulla taberna, etc.: the dis-
tinction is that Horace does not
publish his strictures. — pila: the
manuscripts were hung or placed
out by the pillars to be inspected
by the passer-by, as in our second-
hand bookstores.
73. nec recito : î. e. he does not
even read in public, but only for
the amusement of friends, when
urged.
75. recitent, etc.: others are fond
of reading in public in the Forum
and at the public baths, because
they like to hear themselves in the
enclosed space, which gives a reso-
nance to their elocution, regardless
of tact or time.
78. laedere gaudes: amother
point made by his enemies, that he
is malicious in his satires, in answer
IV. 60—94.]
HORATI SERMONES. 37
inquis, * et hoc studio pravus facis.'
Est auctor quis denique eorum 8o
* Absentem qui rodit amicum,
hoc in me iacis ?
vixi cum quibus ?
Unde petitum
qui non defendit, alio culpante, solutos
qui captat risus hominum famamque dicacis,
fingere qui non visa potest, commissa tacere
qui nequit, hic niger est, hunc tu, Romane, caveto.' 85
Saepe tribus lectis videas cenare quaternos,
e quibus unus amet quavis aspergere cunctos
praeter eum qui praebet aquam ; post hunc quoque potus,
condita cum verax aperit praecordia Liber.
Hic tibi comis et urbanus liberque videtur, 9o
infesto nigris; ego si risi, quod ineptus
pastillos Rufillus olet, Gargonius hircum,
lividus et mordax videor tibi ?
Mentio si qua
de Capitolini furtis iniecta Petilli
to which he calls in the evidence
uf liis fiicuus, asking his dctractors
where they get that stone to throw
at him, i.e. the authority for such
an accusation.
81. absentem, etc.: the objec-
tor answers : ** Your satire shows
it; a man who satirizes is a mali-
cious person, and should be shunned
by every honest Roman.”
85. niger, ?/ie δ/ac/é-/iear/ed s?a??-
derer. — Romane, /ìomesz Komam,
alluding to the supposed honorable
character ofthe Romans, as opposed
to other nations.
86. saepe tribus, etc. : as the
usual number was nine a larger
company is indicated, of whom no
one is safe from the malice of the
detractor.
87. aspergere, zo bespatter.
88. aquam : of course the host
is referred to. Water, to mix with
wine and for the washing of hands,
which was necessary in the Romam
manner of eating, played a more
prominent part at a Roman feast
than with us.
89. condita praecordia, f/ae /ìia.
dem secrets of the heart.
90. hic tibi, etc.: î. e. such a
fellow seems to you, pretending to
be the enemy of slanderers in liter-
ature, only an agreeable companion,
witty amd outspoken; whereas my
sportive jests upon the follies of
men seem to you expressions of
envy, hatred, and malice.
92. See 2. 27.
93. mentio si qua, etc.: a still
more striking example of malicious
slander in social intercourse under
pretence of friendship is introduced
to show what that vice really is, and
by the contrast to show Horace's
freedom from it. Cf. vv. IOO and IoI.
94. Capitolini: Petillius is so
called.in derision on account of his
stealing gold from the statuie of
Jupiter on the Capitol, for which
crime he was tried, but escaped
through the influence of Augustus,
38 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
te coram fuerit, defendas, ut tuus est mos : 95
* Me Capitolinus convictore usus amicoque
a puero est, causaque mea permulta rogatus
fecit, et incolumis laetor quod vivit in urbe ;
sed tamen admiror, quo pacto iudicium illud
fugerit.*
aerugo mera.
Hic nigrae sucus loliginis, haec est IOO
Quod vitium procul afore chartis,
atque animo prius, ut si quid promittere de me
possum aliud vere promitto.
Liberius si
dixero quid, si forte iocosius, hoc mihi iuris
cum venia dabis : insuevit pater optimus hoc me, IO5
ut fugerem exemplis vitiorum quaeque notando.
Cum me hortaretur, parce frugaliter atque
viverem uti contentus eo quod mi ipse parasset :
* Nonne vides Albi ut male vivat filius utque
Baius inops ? Magnum documentum ne patriam rem Iro
96. convictore usus, etc. : /ìas
e12joyed. my imtimacy ama' friema'-
sλῖρ. — causa, etc.: i.e. ** I owe
much to him.”
98. incolumis . . . in urbe, in-`
stead of losing his citizenship and
being exiled, as he would have
been if convicted.
IOO. nigrae sucus loliginis, i.e.
the essence of black malignity. The
figure is from the excretiom of the
cuttlefish from which India ink is
made. Cf. hic niger est, v. 85.
IOI. aerugo mera, pure verá-
gris : comparing slander to rust
eating into bronze, etc., which rust
appears to do. Cf. A. P. 33o. •
Io2. animo, fro/// ///y heart. —
prius, £o begi1z zwith : not having it
in his heart he would not put it
down on paper. — ut si quid, etc.,
as ?ruly as / cam, etc., lit. I promise,
as I promise, in case I cam promise
any thing (else) truly.
Io3. liberius, vit/ too much free-
dom. — iocosius, zviâ too rough a
fest.
IO4. hoc iuris, ?/, is privilege.
Io5. insuevit, etc.: giving a rea-
son why he should be indulged in
his habit of satire, and at the same
time showing that there is no malice
in his strictures because it is for a
moral purpose. — hoc, î. e. ut fuge-
re1m. -
Io6. exemplis notando, òy cemz-
szerimg them t/, rough examples, —
the manner of insuevit.
Io7. hortaretur: the so-called
subjunctive ofrepeated action. Cice-
ro would have used the indigative.
Io8. contentus eo, etc.: î. e. with
that style of living which was with-
in the income that his father had
left him; not living in the style of
the spendthrifts mentioned below.
I IO. magnum documentum,
am urgemt zwarmimg : the words are
in a kind of apposition with the
preceding clauses.
IV. 95-I 25.]
HORATI SERMONES. 39
perdere quis velit.'
A turpi meretricis amore
cum deterreret : * Scetani dissimilis sis.'
Ne sequerer moechas, concessa cum venere uti
possem : * Deprensi non bella est fama Treboni,'
aiebat.
* Sapiens, vitatu quidque petitu II5
sit melius, causas reddet tibi ; mi satis est, si
traditum ab antiquis morem servare tuamque,
dum custodis eges, vitam famamque tueri
incolumem possum; simul ac duraverit aetas 119
membra animumque tuum, nabis sine cortice.
»
Sic me
formabat puerum dictis ; et sive iubebat
ut facerem quid : * Habes auctorem, quo facias hoc,'
unum ex iudicibus selectis obiciebat ;
sive vetabat: * An hoc inhonestum et inutile factu
necne sit addubites, flagret rumore malo cum I25
I I I. ne quis velit : am expres-
sion of prohibition borrowed from
fhelaws, Cf. the common moli facere.
— meretricis: this seems a con-
tradiction to what follows, but the
kind of person here referred to is
the mistress, corresponding to the
Parisian woman of the dem â momede,
to whom a lasting attachment was
disapproved.
I I3. moechas, faithless zwìves,
married women.
I I4. deprensi Treboni: an ex--
ample from real life.
I I 5. sapiens, z/ie 7%i/osop/ier, as
Opposed to the plain practical man.
— quidque : the -que, implies an
omitted quid before. Cf. v. I 7. quid,
depending on the ethical question
implied though not expressed in
causas, may be rendered, as zo
zw/taz.
I 16. causas, the theory, lit. the
reasons, as a philosophical basis of
ethics.
I 17. morem, the mode of life.
II9. duraverit, Aeas matured.
121. dictis, òy his precepts.
I 22. auctorem, an exa///p/e,
properly a voucher for such a course
of conduct.
I23. iudicibus selectis: the
prætor urbanus made a list of the
persons qualified to sit as judices
(jurors) in criminal cases, in which
selection they used their discretion,
so that naturally the body would be
supposed to be composed of respect-
able citizens, and for the most part
of equites and senators, though in
Horace's time other classes were
also admitted. Cf. Araetores ur-
δamâ, qui iurati debemz. optimum
quemque ìm se/ectos iudices referre.
Cic. pro C/uemz. xliii. I2I.
I 24. an, zw/y : as often, intro-
ducing the real second member of a
double question where the first is
omitted, ** Will you not decide this
question or will you still doubt,”
etc. — inutile, imjurious.
I'25. flagret, etc.: i//fame runs
' like wild - fire, of this man and
that.
40 - EHORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
hic atque ille ? '
Avidos vicinum funus ut aegros
exanimat, mortisque metu sibi parcere cogit,
sic teneros animos aliena opprobria saepe
absterrent vitiis.
Ex hoc ego sanus ab illis
perniciem quaecumque ferunt mediocribus et quis 13o
ignoscas vitiis teneor ; fortassis et istinc »
largiter abstulerit longa aetas, liber amicus,
consilium proprium : neque enim, cum lectulus aut me
porticus excepit, desum mihi.
* Hoc faciens vivam melius.'
* Hoc quidam non belle ; numquid ego illi
occurram.'
imprudens olim faciam simile ? '
* Rectius hoc est.'
* Sic dulcis amicis I35
Haec ego mecum
compressis agito labris ; ubi quid datur oti,
illudo chartis.
Hoc est mediocribus illis
ex vitiis unum ; cui si concedere nolis, * • I4o
multa poetarum veniet manus auxilio quae -
sit mihi (nam multo plures sumus), ac veluti te
Iudaei cogemus in hanc concedere turbam.
126. avidos, greeay, Over-eating.
I 27. sibi parcere, za/ée care of
z/íem se/ves.
I 28. teneros, yout/ ful (and
plastic). Cf. duraverit, v. I I9.
I 3o. mediocribus, î. e. and only
by these.
I 31. et istinc = ex istis: the be-
ginning of a statement of the reason
why Horace continues the custom
derived from his father.
I 33. consilium, determination,
resulting from his own reflection. —
neque enim, for, you see... moz. —
lectulus (for a nap) and porticus
. (for exercise), i.e. in his moments
of leisure, — my couc/, has received!
7me, or the portico.
I 34. desum, do / meg/ect myself.
— rectius, the fruemr couprse. ' ' '
I 36. hoc quidam, etc. : Horace
thus connects his strictures with his
own self-improvement. Of course
this is not to be taken too literally,
as appears by his jest in the follow-
ing. — numquid, etc., / Àope /
s/èa/? moz, etc.
I 38. agito, / furma over. — da-
tur, is a//ozwed me. .•
I 39. inludo, / playfully fot
down. — hoc est, etc.: after repre-
senting this proceeding as an effort
at self-culture, he jocosely says that
this fault of writing down his med-
itations is a pardonable fault, one
of those he has not been able to
cure himself of.
I4I. multa, etc.: a droll fqrm
of vengeance, forcing his critic to
join him in the same offence, the
suggestion of which ends his satire
with a jest, as usual, and removes
all appearance of formal preaching.
I42. nam multo, etc. : in the
IV. I 26-I43, V. I-5.]
HORATI SERMONES. 41
Egressum magna me accepit Aricia Roma
hospitio modico; rhetor comes Heliodorus,
Graecorum longe doctissimus ; inde Forum Appi,
differtum nautis cauponibus atque malignis.
Hoc iter ignavi divisimus, altius ac nos 5
dearth of public interests literature
had become the fashionable employ-
ment of the day, and everybody
wrote poetry that could write and
spell. (Cf. Ep. II. I. Io8.)
I 43. Iudaei: the Jews were fa-
mous with the ancients for their
emergy in proselyting.
SATIRE 5. This satire describes
a journey of the poet from Rome
to Brundisium, and is imitated from
a similar work of Lucilius. The
occasion of the journey has been
somewhat disputed. Horace went,
as was usual in those times, as a
companion in the suite of his noble
patrons, on am embassy to arrange
terms between Octavianus (Augus-
tus) and Antonius. There were
two such embassies. One was in
4o B.C., which met Antonius at
Brundisium, and concluded the so-
called Peace of Brundisium, by
which Antonius received Octavia,
the sister of Augustus, as his wife,
and the domains of the state were
divided between the two parties.
The other was in B.C. 37, which
actually went to Tarentum, but was
originally intended for Brundisium.
3y this treaty Antonius lent assist-
ance to Augustus against Sex. Pom-
pey, who had renewed hostilities
since the preceding peace. On both
these occasions Mæcenas was pres-
ent, and the journey described might
be on either, but it is more probable
that it was the lätter. See Kirch-
ner, Quaest. Horat. I. 54. The
interest of the work is chiefly anti-
quarian, rather than literary, except
so far as it gives some light upon
Horace's person amd character. But
from the personal interest felt in the
poet the Satire has always been a
favorite ; and indeed, in the scarcity
of unaffected personal narrative of
ancient times, may well be so still.
I. Aricia, the first stopping-place
for the night on the Appian Way,
sixteen Romam miles (not quite
fifteen of ours) south by east of
Rome.
2. hospitio, quarte?'s, no doubt
a public house.
3. doctissimus : probably a
friendly overestimate, as no account
of him has come down to us with
all his learning. — Forum Appi:
twenty Roman miles on the same
road, at the headofthe canal through
the Pomptine Marshes. Thus far
Horace and his companiom seem to
have travelled on foot, while the
other members of the party drove
and met them, some at Appii Forum
(cf. comites, v. 9), * and some at
Anxur. …
4. malignis: as if their cheat-
ing was from enmity to the human
race. Cf. Tony Weller's estimate of
pike keepers. -
5. divisimus, ì.e. taking two
days for it instead of one. — altius
praecinctis: as the clothing of the
ancients was long and flowing,
“ girding up the loins*? was a symbol
of activity and energy, as appears by
the contrasted ignavi and tardis.
42 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
praecinctis unum ; minus est gravis Appia tardis.
Hic ego propter aquam, quod erat detérrima, ventri
indico bellum, cenantis haud animo aequo
exspectans comites.
Iam nox inducere terris
umbras et caelo diffundere signa parabat ; IO
tum pueri nautis, pueris convicia nauta
ingerere : * Huc appelle !'
iam satis est !'
tota abit hora.
* Trecentos inseris !'
Dum aes exigitur, dum mula ligatur,
Mali culices ranaeque palustres
* Ohe,
avertunt somnos, absentem ut cantat amicam I5
multa prolutus vappa nauta atque viator
certatim. Tandem fessus dormire viator
incipit, ac missae pastum retinacula mulae
nauta piger saxo religat stertitque supinus.
Iamque dies aderat, nil cum procedere lintrem 2O
sentimus, donec cerebrosus prosilit unus &
ac mulae nautaeque caput lumbosque saligno
fuste dolat; quarta vix demum exponimuf hora.
6. gravis, severe. The road was
paved the whole length with large
polygonal stones which were much
worn and slippery, as they appear to
this day.
7. hic ego, etc.: i.e. he took no
dinner on account of the state of
his bowels.
9. iam nox, etc.: an imitation
of the Epic style for the burlesque
effect. The canal journey was made
by night, as formerly often on the
Erie Canal, and nowadays in steam-
boats.
I I. pueri: the slaves of the pas-
sengers.
I 2. huc appelle : the cry of per-
sons who wish to get on board. —
trecentos inseris, ohe iam satis
est : the cry of the passengers,
who are afraid of overloading the
boat.
I 3. aes exigitur, ?/iey are co//ec?-
Âng the fare (ma ulum). — mula:
that towed the boat.
I 5. absentem amicam, his ab-
semz szwee//iearz, * The girl I left
behind me.” — ut, zwhile, in the
loose manner of using that conjunc-
tion in the comedy.
I6. viator, a passem ger on board
(possibly the passemgers collectively).
The sleeping of the passengers is the
occasion of the stopping of the boat.
The word ordinarily means a pas-
senger on foot, but here the suppo-
sition of a traveller on the tow-pafh
seemms absurd. *.
I 8. retinacula,
missae, turmed out.
2o. iamque dies, etc.: i.e. the
passengers Wake up, and discover
the trick. 3
2 I. cerebrosus. /.o£-/.eadea, less
patient than the rest.
23. dolat, pounds, lit. hews : a col-
z/ie /;a/tepr. —
V. 6-34.]
HORATI SERMONES. 43
Ora manusque tua lavimus, Feronja, lympha.
Milia tuim pransi tria repimus, atque subimus 25
impositum saxis late candentibus Anxur.
Huc venturus erat Maecenas, optimus atque
Cocceius, missi magnis de rebus uterque
legati, aversos soliti componere amicos.
Hic oculis ego nigra meis collyria lippus 3o
illinere.
Interea Maecenas advenit atque
Cocceius, Capitoque simul Fonteius, ad unguem
factus homo, Antoni, non ut magis alter, amicus.
Fundos Aufidio Lusco praetore libenter
loquial expression. — vix demum,
at last and hara/y ?/iem. — quarta
hora: about ten o'clock, though the
distance was less than twenty miles.
24. Feronia: an old Italian
divinity of uncertain attributes and
functions. She had a sacred grove
and fountain on the Appian Way,
at the end of the canal, where Hor-
ace landed, made his morning toilet,
and took his breakfast.
25. subimus: Tarracina (Anxur)
was situated on a high rocky hill
on the sea. Hence the use of sub,
and of impositum, etc. •
27. huc, etc.: apparently the
dignitaries came by some rapid con-
veyance On the Appiam Way, or
they may have been already in the
neighborhood, and were met by the
poet at Tarracina, where the Appian
turns eastward away from the coast.
28. Cocceius, L. Cocceius Ner-
va, the great-gramdfather of the Em-
peror Nerva. He, as well as Mæ-
cenas, was a friend of Octaviam, and
had in B.C. 4o assisted in arranging
the Peace of Brundisium. (See In-
troduction to this $atire.) Hence
soliti, v. 29.
3o. hic oculis, etc. : a detail like
that in v. 48. The poet consumes
the time in medical treatment.
32. Capito: Fonteius Capito,
who assisted in the embassy as a
friend and partisan of* Antonius.
He remained with the latter and
assisted him in the contest later. —
ad unguem : a proverbial expres-
sion drawn from trying the surface
of marble and wood with the nail;
perfect zo a hair.
33. ut, sc. esset or est.
34. Fundos: eleven miles east
of Tarracina, traversed by the Ap-
pian Way. — praetore : the name
ofthe man and his office are inserted
in the form of a date, as if he were
important enough to give his name
to the year like the consuils. Origi-
nally praetor was the Italian name
for the highest magistrate of an in-
dependent city; and some cities
were allowed to retain the old name
after their subjugation by the Ro-
mans, though generally such magis-
trates were called duovirú. The
person here seems to have made
himself ridiculous by putting on the
airs of a consul, assuming the / om-
ors (praemia) of that office, — the
zoga praetexta with its crimson bor-
der, the broad crimson stripe on the
front of thè tunic, and further, what
does not seem to have been used
by the consul, a pan of charcoal
44 s.]HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
linquimus, insani ridentes praemia scribae, 35
praetextam et latum clavum prunaeque vatilluJ,—
In Mamurrarum lassi deinde urbe manemus,
Murena praebente domum, Capitone culinam.
Postera lux oritur multo gratissima ; namque
Plotius et Varius Sinuessae Vergiliusque 4o
occurrunt, animae, qualis neque candidiqres
terra tulit, neque quis me sit dévinctior alter.
O qui complexus et gaudia quanta fuerunt !
Nil ego contulerim iucundo sanus amico.
Proxima Campano popti quae villula tectum 45
praebuit, et parochi quae debent ligna salemque.
for burning incense before him.
Whether this display was in honor
of the distinguished visitors, as is
very likely, does not appear. — li-
benter, î. e. we are glad not to stop
there.
35. insani, zweaÅ-/;eaded. î. e.
his head was turned by his position.
— scribae : î. e. a mere clerk who
Had risen to the office. These clerks
might be of low origin, or even
freedmem. Cf. v. 66.
37. Mamurrarum urbe : For-
miæ, a town twelve miles further.
The form of expression no doubt
contains a bit of satire. Mamurra
was a knight from Formiæ, whose
Other names even are not known,
who rose through the favor of Julius
Cæsar to wealth and some distinc-
tion, but spent his wealth in extrav-
agant living, and mever possessed a
very noble reputation. Of his fam-
ily (implied in the plural) nothing
whatever is known. — manemus,
spema the might. Cf. v. 87.
38. Murena: L. Licinius Teren-
tius Varro Murena, the brother of
Terentia, Mæcenas* wife, apparently
had like many noble Romans a
villa at Formiae ; as probably also
*^_
Fonteius did, who entertained the
travellers at dimner (culinam).
4o. Plotius: Plotius Tucca, whom
with Varius, both literary friends of
Virgil, that poet made his literary
executors. Cf. I. IO. 44 and 81, and
I. 6. 55.—Sinuessae, eighteen miles
from Formiæ, towards Campania.
4 I. qualis : we should expect
quibus depending on candidiores,
but the poet says, ** of a kind of
which kind the earth has produced
none fairer than they.”
42. neque quis, a md ?o 70/ìom
720, etc.
44. sanus, in mzy senses.
45. Campano ponti, a bridge
(three miles from Sinuessa) over
the Savo, a small river just north of
the Volturnus. The word Campano
seems to be used loosely, as the
real boundary between Latium and
Campania is a few miles farther
north. — villula: apparently an inn
especially for public officers, who
regularly travelled at the public ex-
pense.
46. parochi, z/íe s?ezwards ; ap-
parently persons whose duty it was
to furnish the entertainment which
the cities were bound to supply to
V. 35-56.]
HORATI SERMONES. } 45
Hinc muli Capuae clitellas tempore ponunt.
Lusum it Maecenas, dormitum ego Vergiliusque ;
namque pila lippis inimicum et ludere crudis.
Hinc nos Coccei recipit plenissima villa, 5o
quae super est Caudi cauponas.
Nunc mihi paucis
Sarmenti scurrae pugnam Messique Cicirri,
Musa, velim memores, et quo patre natus uterque
contulerit litis.
Messi clarum genus Osci;
Sarmenti domina exstat : ab his maioribus orti 55,
ad pugnam venere.
state travellers. It may be that they
were in this case bound to supply
only certain articles, the travellers
bringing the rest, or the words ligna
salemque, may meam entertainment
generally, with a hint at its meagre-
miess. TCf. v. 5o.
47. hinc, from here ; i.e. start-
ing the next morning. — Capuae,
twenty-two miles farther on, the
largest and most important city
of Campania. — muli: the baggage
only is mentioned, but the whole
train is referred to.
48. lusum : sc. pila (cf. v. 49),
for exercise before dinner as was the
custom of the Romans, while the
two poets took a nap instead, as
was also not unusual.
49. pila: the Romans had sev-
eral games of ball which consisted
chiefly in throwing and catching, the
use of the bat being a modern im-
provement. Cf. I. 6. I 26. — lippis,
/o sore eyes. — et crudis, and zweaÂ
stomac/is. The word means proper-
ly undigested, but was regularly
transferred to the dyspeptic him-
self.
-5o. plenissima, zwe//-szocked. Cf.
v. 46. — villa: many noble Romans
Had country-seats in various parts
of Italy.
5 I. Caudi: Caudium, the scene
of the great defeat of the Romans
Prior Sarmentus : * Equi te
by the Samnites, was in the moun-
tain region of the Hirpini, twenty-
one miles from Capua, eastward
towards the Apennines. — super, on
the heights above the town. — nunc
mihi, etc.: the poet again assumes.
the Epic style. The scene described
was evidently of a kind very com-
mon among the rich Romans, who
were particularly fond of these scur-
rilous encounters. Cf. the word
scurra, and Plin. Ep. IX. I7.
52. Sarmenti: abuffoon (scurra)
accompanying the expedition in the
capacity of clerk. — Messi Cicirri :
a persom of the same kind belong-
ing in the town, and so no doubt
brought out by Cocceius, who was,
familiar with the region, to pit
against the favorite from Rome,
Cicirrus (icticippos, cocÄ) is a nick-
I\2lII1€.
53. quo patre; the genealogy of
the hero is always a matter of in-
terest in romance. The burlesque
here is the more striking because
Sarmentus as a slave was filius
1zul/ius, and Messius was a de-
spised Oscan.
54. Osci: predicate of est to be
supplied with genus, which is here
equivalent to a plural, as meaning
the man's ancestors.
56. equi feri: apparently the
fabled unicorn, famous for its sup-
46 - HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
esse feri similem dico.'
Messius * Accipio,' caput et movet.
Ridemus, et ipse
* O, tua cornu
ni foret exsecto frons,' inquit, * quid faceres, cum
sic mutilus miniteris ? ' At illi foeda cicatrix 6O
saetosam laevi frontem turpaverat oris. \
Campanum in morbum, in faciem permulta iocatus,
pastorem saltaret uti Cyclopa rogabat ;
nil illi larva aut tragicis opus esse cothurnis.
Multa Cicirrus ad haec : Donasset iamne catenam 65.
ex voto Laribus, quaerebat ; scriba quod esset,
nilo deterius dominae ius esse : rogabat
denique, cur umquam fugisset, cui satis una
farris libra foret, gracili sic tamque pusillo.
posed ferocity. The comparison
was partly on account of his size
and ugliness, partly on account of
the scar referred to in v. 6I.
58. accipio: as if he said, ** So I
am; you'd better look out for me!”
shaking his head like the supposed
animal. — O tua, etc.: the reply of
Sarmentus: “ How dangerous you.
would be if you hadn't had your
horn cut off.” Messius had had a.
great wen (Campanus morbus) re-
moved from his forehead. — cornu,
abl. of quality.
6o. sic, z/, us ... as you are. — at,
mozw, introducing the explanatory
words of Horace.
61. saetqsam : î. e. a hairy scar
was left.
62. Campanum : diseases aris-
ing from loose living which disfig-
ure the face or body are regularly
assigned to some foreign country,
as by the English to France, by the
Erench to Italy.
. 63. pastorem : a cognate acc.,
like * to play Hamlet.” The point
is in the ugliness, huge size, and
scarred forehead (representing a
cyclops' eye) of the buffoon, all of
which agreed with the character of
Polyphemus, whose hopeless love
for Galatea was a favorite theme
with the ancients, somewhat like
Beauty and the Beast. — saltaret:
z.e. to act in pantomime.
65. multa: the chaffing of Cicir-
rus is aimed at the servile condition
of Sarmentus as well as his diminu-
tive size. Much of the fun to a
Roman would lie in the contrast
between the puny, dainty favorite
from the city and the huge, over-
grown countryman with his pheno-
menal ugliness ; and it will be seen
that their abuse of each other is
directed at these peculiarities. Such
cross-matches had a charm for the
Romans, as we see by some of their
gladiatorial contestS. — donasset:
the whole point is in the ironical
suggestion that he was a runaway
slave, as it was the custom for
manumitted slaves to make an of-
fering to the household gods, though
probably not of a chain, an allusion
which is inserted here in analogy to
cases like Od. III. 26. 4, Æρ. I. I. 5.
68. cui satis, etc.: he might have
saved enough from his rations, such
a puny fellow as he, to buy his free-
dom.
V. 57—89.]
HORATI SERMONES. 47
Prorsus iucunde cenam producimus illam. 7o
Tendimus hinc recta Beneventum, ubi sedulus hospes
paene macros arsit dum turdos versat in igni;
nam vaga per veterem dilapso flamma culinam
Volcano summum properabat lambere tectum.
Convivas avidos cenam servosque timentis 75
tum rapere, atque omnis rèstinguere velle videres.
Incipit ex illo montis Apulia(notos-
ostentare mihi, quos torret Atabulus, et quos
numquam erepsemus, nisi nos vicina Trivici
villa recepisset, lacrimoso non sine fumo, 8o
ludos cum foliis ramos urente camino.
Quattuor hinc rapimur viginti et milia raedis,
mansuri oppidulo quod versu dicere non est,
signis perfacile est :' venit vilissima rerufm
Y\
hic aqua; sed panis longe pulcherrimus, ultra
7 I. tendimus: the eighth day,
twelve miles. — sedulus, offìcious.
72. arsit, set himself (i.e. his
House) afire.
73. dilapso, escapìng, of course
from the focus or fireplace in the
l<itchen, and so spreading.
75. convivas, etc.: the picture
of the efforts to save the dinner. —
avidos: ám their λμmger.— timen-
tis: frzg/azemea, as accords with
their servile nature.
77. Apulia: close on the borders
of which Horace passed his early
childhood; hence notos.
78. Atabulus: a Iocal name for
a hot Southerm wind, the Sirocco.
79. erepsemus : the colloquial
shortening for erepsissemus.—Tri-
vici: an unimportant village where
they passed the night. But for the
rest afforded them, they never could
have dragged on Over the mountains.
8I. udos: the cause of thesmoke.
— camino: properly the word for
forge or furnace, but here no doubt
some kind of a fireplace for warm-
ing. But no chimney like ours can
be shown to have existed among the
Romans. &
86. rapimur: of the rapid pace;
cf. erepsemus, v. 79. — raedis : a
Heavy travelling coach with four
wheels. The exact shape is not
known, but it must have been large
and roomy, and was the ordinary
public carriage.
87. mansuri, szop, pass the night.
Cf. Od. I. I. 25. — oppidulo: accord-
ing to Porphyrion, Equos Tuticus
(which could not easily be intro-
duced in hexameter on account of
the succession of longs and shorts,
v . . . J v); butthis is extremely
uncertain.
88. venit: έ.e. water, elsewhere
the cheapest of all things, is actually
sold for money here.
89. ultra: the traveller supplies
himself with bread in advance, for
the next town farther on, Canusium,
has gritty bread.
48
[LIB. I.
HORATI SERMONES.
3 ] L-# r },' r ; , ;
callidus ut soleat umeris portare viator:
9O
nam Canusi lapidosus, aquae non ditior urna
qui locus a forti Diomede est conditus olim.
Flentibus hinc Varius discedit maestus amicis.
Inde Rubos fessi pervenimus, futpote longum
carpentes iter et factum corruptius imbri.
95
Postera tempestas melior, via peior ad usque
Bari moenia piscosi; dein Gnatia Lymphis
iratis exstrücta dedit risusque iocosque,
düm flamifia sine tura liquescere limine sacro
persuadere cupit.
Credat Iudaeus Apella,
IOO
non ego: namque deos didici securum agere aevum,
nec, si quid miri faciat natura, deos id
tristis ex alto caeli demittere tecto.
Brundisium
9o. soleat: for prosody, see In-
troduction.
9I. ditior: this construction seems
odd to an English-speaking person,
but an antecedent which would be
in apposition with some preceding
idea is, in Latin, embodied in the
relative clause, a place mo rìcher,
etc., zwhich, etc., as in quae res, a
zhàng zwhich, and the like. — aquae,
genitive after ditior, as an adjective
of plenty.
92. Diomede: the settlement of
this Greek chief in Apulia was a
common tradition. Cf. Æm. VIII. 9.
94. Rubos: the town Rubi,
the next stopping-place. — utpote :
more commonly found with rela-
tives, but used by Horace several
times with adjective expressions. Cf.
I. 4. 24, and II. 4. 9.
97. Bari: Barium, on the coast;
hence piscosi. — Gnatia Lymphis
iratis: because the place has no
water-springs, of which the Lym-
phæ — a Latin equivalent of Nym-
phæ — were the tutelary divinities.
99. limine sacro: ì.e. the inhab-
v • • • Cr- -u -\-..?
longae finis chartaeque viaeque est.
itants claim a miraculous melting of
incense without fire, probably some
volcanic effect (cf. Plin. Æ7. AV. II.
I I I, Keperi/ur im Salem?imo oppido
Ægmatia imposito /igmzo in saxumz
quoddamz ibi sacrum, prozimus /?a//z-
7/zam exsistere).
IOO. Apella: a name apparently
Greek, but a common one of freed-
men, and here assigned to a Jew,
perhaps a converted Greek. The
Jews were regarded as especially
superstitious (cf. I. 9. 7I and II. 3.
28I seq.).
IOI. securum : the Epicuream
doctrine that the gods paid no at-
tention to human affairs, but lived
at ease in the intermundane spaces.
Cf. Lucr. V. 82.
Io2. miri: all strange occur-
rences were supposed by the an-
cients to be direct interpositions of
the gods in human affairs to indi-
cate their displeasure (tristis), a
notion that the Epicureans com-
lbated, asserting that all such took
place by the operations of nature.
Io4. Brundisium : either the
v. 9o-IO4, VI, I-8.]
HORATI SERMONES. 49
-& .*
«*
VI.
Non quia, Maecenas, Lydorum quicquid Etruscos
incoluit finis, nemo generosior est te,
nec quod avus tibi maternus fuit atque paternus,
olim qui magnis legionibus imperitarent,
ut plerique solent, naso suspendis adunco 5
ignotos, ut me libertino patre natum.
Cum referre negas quali sit quisque parente
natus, dum ingenuus, persuades hoc tibi vere,
rest of the journey (if it continued
any farther) was taken by sea to
Tarentum, or Horace may have
stopped here.
SATIRE 6. There probably never
was a nation in which family pride
was stronger than it was among the
Romans. And this pride had its
natural accompaniment of mean
servility and vulgar striving for
social and political advancement.
Horace, of low birth but recom-
mended by his talents to the favor
of the great, seems to have been a
mark for all sorts of attacks from
envious rivals and ignoble souls.
But his whole life and writings
show a remarkable freedom from
all vulgar social ambitions, and a
truly refined self-respect and inde-
pendence. This Satire is an answer
to the attacks of his enemies, and a
statement of his creed in regard to
social position.
I. non quia : yotz do ?zo? ///ace-
72as, becazzse, etc. ; this is not the
common construction of non quia
(/zo? òeca zuse . . . όuz), as the mood
of est shows, but the negative be-
longs to suspendis, but is placed
in this emphatic position to show
that the reason for which Mæcenas
might have scorned l1um ibler IIieri
did not cause him to do so. —
Maecenas : the Satire is addressed
to Mæcenas, both as a compli-
ment to him and to give it addi-
tional weight from the authority
of so great a man. — Lydorum :
partitive genitive with quicquid, a
colloquial and archaic form of
speech, though common in all styles.
— quicquid would have for its ante-
cedent an omnium or the like, a
partitive genitive after nemo. The
Etrurians were supposed to have
come originally from Lydia. Their
origin is still a mystery, but the old
tradition is as likely to be true as
any other view.
2. generosior: Mæcenas was
descended from the Cilnii, a noble
family of Etruria.
4. legionibus: used loosely for
bodies of troops in general.
5. naso, etc.: î. e. turn up your
nOSe at.
7. cum, etc. : zw/iem? J/o?z say àÀat
zz //za èes mo differe/ace, etc., you are
convinced, ama' 7?g/at?y so, ihat, etc.
8. ingenuus: the inevitable taint
of slavery was still regarded as a
disqualification for social advance-
ment, even by men as large-minded
as Mæcenas and Horace ; but the
son of a freedman was free from
that taint.
50 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
ante potestatem Tulli atque ignobile regnum
multos saepe viros nullis maioribus ortos IC}
et vixisse probos, amplis et honoribus auctos ;
contra Laevinum, Valeri genus, unde superbus
Tarquinius regno pulsus fugit, unius assis
non umquam pretio pluris licuisse, notante
iudice, quo nosti, populo, qui stultus honores I5
saepe dat indignis et famae servit ineptus,
qui stupet in titulis et imaginibus.
Quid oportet
nos facere, a volgo longe longeque remotos ?
Namque esto, populus Laevino mallet honorem
9. Tulli: Servius Tullius was
supposed to have been a slave. The
whole idea is, that the view of Mae-
cenas is correct, which makes virtue
and not mere birth the criterion of
nobility.
Io. multos, etc.: i.e. that this
has always been the case from the
first, though the other cases have
not come down to us.
I I. honoribus, i.e. honors con-
ferred by the people, offices.
I 2. contra: introducing the op-
posite case of a worthless noble. —
Laevinum : the particular individ-
ual is unknown, but there were
many famous members of this
branch of the Valerian family. This
one is no doubt one of the stock,
who was a candidate for office, but
failed to be elected on account of
his worthless character, as some-
times happened even in Rome.—
Valeri: Marcus Valerius Poplicola,
the associate of Brutus in the expul-
siom of the Tarquins. The gens Va-
leria was one of the oldest and most
distinguished of the great Roman
families, and had many branches, all
counting distinguished men among
their number. — genus: cf. Od. I.
3. 27, and Virg. Æn. IV. I2. —
unde = a quo.
I 3. assis: depending on pretio.
I4. licuisse, zwen? /or, a jocose
expression for zwas zwo/rt/., as if he
had been offered for what he would
bring. — notante : alluding to the
censorial mota, or mark set by the
censor against any name on the list
to exclude the person from the order
or tribe.
I 5. iudice, etc., i.e. ?/z z/ae criz-
ica? estimatiom of t/ie fieop/e.— quo:
for quem, attracted by populo.
See Gr. § 2OO. δ. — qui stultus: ì.e.
even the people, who are led astray
by the glamour of rank, know bet-
ter than to choose a Lævinus.
I6. famae : î. e. of one's ances-
tors who were famous, though their
descendant is worthless.
I 7. titulis et imaginibus: any
person who had held a curule office
left to his descendants the right to
put up in their houses the wax mask
of their ancestor, with an inscrip-
tion bearing his name and honors.
Such masks and lists of honor were
therefore a sign of nobility. — quid
oportet, ets.: i.e. if the foolish
crowd have right ideas, how much
more ought we to have right ideas
who are far better educated.
I 9. namque esto, etc., for a/?er
al/ suppose fhat, etc.; i.e. even ifthe
VI. 9—25.]
HORATI SERMONES. 5]
quam Decio mandare novo, censorque moveret 2O»
Appius, ingenuo si non essem patre natus :
vel merito, quoniam in propria non pelle quiessem.
Sed fulgente trahit constrictos gloria curru
non minus ignotos generosis.
Quo tibi, Tilli,
sumere depositum clavum fierique tribuno ? 25.
people preferred a Lævinus to an
obscure worthy man (which, as he
has just said, they do not), it would
be justified in doing so ; and the
man of low birth would have no
reason to complain, because he has
mo right to get out of his place.
The logical connection is: “ We
ought to hold virtue higher and
birth lower than they, for even if
they did prefer the high-born to the
worthy in this particular case (of
political preferment), they would be
justified ; hence, as they do not,
their example is all the more forci-
ble for us.” It must be remembered
that after all Horace is dealing with
social relations, which fact he always
keeps in mind, underlying the whole.
— mallet: a condition without si,
suppose they did prefer.
20. Decio: P. Decius, a plebe-
iam consul who devoted himself to
death for the success of the Roman
arms in the Latin War, B.C. 34o ;
and his son, of the same name, imi-
tated his father's example in B.C.
295. — novo: a persom whose an-
cestors had held no curule office
Was a 7zozyus λο//zo. — moveret:
turn out of the senate, as Appius
Claudius Pulcher in his censorship,
5O B.C., did all sons of freedmem. —
essem : the general idea is repre-
sented by Horace's own case, though
he had never been in the senate.
As he was, however, the son of a
freedman, his case would be like
the one referred to if he had, and
the mention of a special person
makes the whole more vivid.
22. vel merito: sz. moveret,
though both cases are really meant.
— in propria pelle, i.e. his proper
position. (An allusion to the
fable of ** The Ass in the Lion's.
Skin.*)
23. sed: but though the people
would be right in the case supposed,
and such men have no claims, yet
the ambition of the humble will not
be quenched as it ought to be by
that fact. — trahit, i.e. leads captive,
the figure being drawn from the tri-
umph, which the captives accom-
panied in chains, just before the
conqueror's chariot, possibly origi-
nally chained to it. — gloria, Ambì-
zionz. -
24. generosis, £he mob/y born .*
in prose, quam generosos. — quo,
zo zw/at ema'? hence, of zw/at use ?
— Tilli: a Tillius said to have been
removed from the senate, who, as
was customary in such cases, began
anew to seek the senatorial rank.
He was doubtless a freedman.
25. clavum : the single broad
stripe of red down the front of the
tunic which was the sign of magis-
terial and senatorial dignity. —
tribuno : apparently tribum zzs mi?i-
zz/yz, since the tribune of the people
appears not to have worn any in-
signia as such, though the office
would entitle him to be enrolled in
the senate, and so afterwards to re-
ceive the insignia mentioned. Some
of the tribunes of the soldiers wore
the laticlave, and were chosen into
the senate, a custom introduced by
Augustus.
52 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
Invidia accrevit, privato quae minor esset.
.Nam ut quisque insanus nigris medium impediit crus
pellibus, et latum demisit pectore clavum,
audit continuo * Quis homo hic est, quo patre natus ?'
Ut, si qui aegrotet quo morbo Barrus, haberi 3o
et cupiat formosus, eat quacumque, puellis
iniciat curam quaerendi singula, quali
sit facie, sura, quali pede, dente, capillo ;
sic qui promittit civis, urbem sibi curae,
imperium fore et Italiam, delubra deorum, 35
quo patre sit natus, num ignota matre inhonestus,
omnis mortalis curare et quaerere cogit
* Tune, Syri, Damae, aut Dionysi filius, audes
deicere e saxo civis aut tradere Cadmo ? ' a .- .
* At Novius collega gradu post me sedet uno ; 4O
namque est ille, pater quod erat meus.' * Hoc tibi Paulus
et Messalla videris ?
27. insanus: î. e. with ambition.
— nigris : the senatorial shoe was
tied with four black thongs (corrì-
giae).
29. homo, fe//ozw, implying a cer-
tain degree of contempt.
3o. morbo, i.e. inordinate vanity.
32. iniciat : pretending to be a
handsome man, he attracts atten-
tion and criticism of details which
would otherwise pass unnoticed.
The same is the case with the ambi-
tious man.
34. civis, etc.: perhaps taken
from the official oath of the magis-
trates generally without particular
reference to any one.
38. Syri, etc.: common slaves?
names, indicating that the man was
the son of a freedman.
39. deicere : throwing from the
Tarpeian Rock was the old punish-
ment for many offences. The man's
functions as magistrate would in-
At hic, si plaustra ducenta
clude the condemnation of citizens.
— Cadmo: evidently an execu-
tioner. .
40. Novius: perhaps chosen by
Horace as formed from novus —
sedet: in allusion to the graded
seats of the theatre, where the sen-
ators sat in the orchestra and the
equites in fourteen rows of seats
behind them. The ambitious up-
start claims that he is of better fam-
ily than his colleague, for he is only
a freedman, while the speaker was
born free at any rate.
4 I. hoc tibi: The people answer,
“ Do you plume yourself so much
on that, that you think you belong
to one of the old families, the
Æmilii (Paulus) or the Valerii
(Messala) ?” These are indicated
by common family names in those
clans.
42. at hic : Horace, with that
double meaning which is character-
VI. 26—5 I.]
IHORATI SERMONES. 53
concurrantque foro tria funera magna sonabit
cornua quod vincatque tubas ; saltem tenet hoc nos.'
Nunc ad me redeo libertino patre natum, 45
quem rodunt omnes libertino patre natum,
nunc, quia sim tibi, Maecenas, convictor ; at olim,
quod mihi pareret legio Romana tribuno. -
Dissimile hoc illi est; quia non, ut forsit honorem
iure mihi invideat quivis, ita te quoque amicum, 5o
praesertim cautum dignos assumere, prava
istic of him, justifies the advance-
ment of the freedman colleague by
stating a quality of his which weighs
much in the minds of the people,
but which you feel sure at the
same time Horace himself despises.
“The man is a blatant popular
speaker, and has at least that claim
to the favor of the people.” — plaus-
tra: the heavy carrying wagon of
the Romans, noted, and probably
named, for its creaking (fi/a ardo).
43. funera: the funeral proces-
sion was accompanied with music.
— magna: oftem taken with funera,
as omly a great funeral would be
noisy; but as magna sonare is a
standing phrase, it is better to take
it so here (cf. I. 4. 44), making
magna an adverb.
44. quod: the antecedent id
would be a cognate accusative. —
cornua, curved brass horns. — tu-
ba, a straight trumpet.
45. nunc ad me, etc.: after
showing the folly of po/itica/ ambi-
tion, he now comes back to the
main idea of persoyaa? and. soc?a/
dignity as independent of birth, de-
fending himself against the slurs
of his vulgar detractors.
46. rodunt, disparage (gnaw like
rats). — libertino, etc.: the repeti-
tiom indicates a direct quotation
from his detractors, justas they keep
repeating it,
47. sim, the subjunctive as usual
puts the words into the mouth of
the detractors. — convictor : notice
that this indicates only a social ad-
vancement as the friend of Maece-
mas, mota political preferment, which
he claims no right to.
48. tribuno : see life of Horace.
Sixteen (or twenty-four) tribunes
were elected by the people, and
were real magistrates, but others
could be chosen by the generals,
and were called rufuli, This ad-
vancement was a matter rather of
favor tham of merit, and was cer-
tainly so in Horace's case.
49. dissimile : here is brought
out more fully the distinction which
underlies the whole. The tribunate
is an official honor, to which a low-
born mam had perhaps no claim;
but the friendship of Mæcenas no-
body has a right to envy him,
because that is a matter of personal
worthiness. — forsit : omly found
here, but no doubt amother of
Horace's colloquialisms.
5 I. cautum : Mæcenas' reputa-
tiom for selecting only the worthy,
amd those not from motives of am-
bition (i.e. to increase his political
influence and gain supporters),
makes his friemdship still more a
tribute to worth than the friendship
of others might be.
54 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
ambitione procul.
Felicem dicere non hoc
me possim, casu quod te sortitus amicum ;
nulla etenim mihi te fors obtulit: optimus olim
Vergilius, post hunc Varius dixere quid essem. 55
Ut veni coram, singultim pauca locutus
(infans namque pudor prohibebat plura profari),
non ego me claro natum patre, non ego circum
me Satureiano vectari rura caballo,
sed, quod eram, narro.
Respondes, ut tuus est mos, 6o
pauca ; abeo, et revocas nono post mense iubesque
esse in amicorum numero.
Magnum hoc ego duco,
quod placui tibi, qui turpi secernis honestum,
non patre praeclaro, sed vita et pectore puro.
Atqui si vitiis mediocribus ac mea paucis 65
mendosa est natura, alioqui recta, — velut si
52. ambitione : (referring to
Maecenas). Every means of adding
to one's influence, and every at-
tempt to get on in the political
career, the object of both high and
low, was among the Romans called
ambitio. Especially so was any at-
tempt to gain favor either by the
powerful or the humble. — felicem :
£.e. because that implies good luck,
an idea which is repeated in casu
and sortitus (sc. sim), and again
in fors, etc.
55. Vergilius, the poet Virgil,
who, like most of the writers of
talent at the time, was an intimate
friend of Mæcenas, whose generous
patromage of literature has become a
proverb. — Varius : see I. 5. 4o. —
quid : ?.e. his character and talents.
56. ut veni coram : at his first
introduction. — singultim ... locu-
tus, sta//z//ze/ri/ag out, or speaki/zg.
âm co/îeremt/y.
57. infans: in its original sense
of Speec/a/ess ; here, of course, ap-
plied to pudor as making a mam so.
58. non ego: i.e. I did mot pre-
tend, as many do, to be a mam of
consequence from some provincial
city, nor that my father had great
estates at Tarentum.
59. Satureiano : Said by a scho-
liast to be from Satureia, a name of
Tarentum ; at any rate it was in
that vicinity, and indicates estates
in Southern Italy. — caballo : ap-
parently the popular word (cf. the
Romance words).
6o. quod eram : we should ex-
pect in Latin am indirect question
(cf.*v. 55), but here it is “ the posi-
tion, etc., that I held.”
63. turpi, honestum : strictly the
neuter forms ; z/z/^pe and /io/zeszu///,
the technical Stoic names for virtue
and vice, but here used to include
persons (cf. I. 3. 42, note, amd Æρ.
I. 9. 5).
65. atqui: î. e. though I claim
no proud descent from my father,
yet it is to him that I owe whatever
I am. — mediocribus: î. e. only
such. Cf. I. 4. I 3o.
VI. 52-8o.]
HORATI SERMONES. 55
egregio inspersos reprehendas corpore naevos, —
si neque avaritiam neque sordes ac mala lustra
obiciet vere quisquam mihi, purus et insons
(ut me collaudem) si et vivo carus amicis, 7o
causa fuit pater his, qui, macro pauper agello,
noluit in Flavi ludum me mittere, magni
quo pueri magnis e centurionibus orti,
laevo suspensi loculos tabulamque lacerto,
ibant octonos referentes Idibus aeris, 75
sed puerum est ausus Romam portare, docendum
artis quas doceat quivis eques atque senator
semet prognatos.
Vestem servosque sequentis,
in magno ut populo, si qui vidisset, avita
ex re praeberi sumptus mihi crederet illos. 8o
67. egregio: in form generally,
but slightly disfigured by insignifi-
cant moles, etc.
68. sordes: this word, connected
by the conjunctions with what fol-
lows, and separated from avaritiam,
must refer to vulgar tastes and
habits. — mala lustra, dems of vice.
69. purus et insons: take with
carus after si.
7 I. his: neuter, i.e. his rebus.
— macro : opposed to pinguis.
72. Flavi, a local schoolmaster
in Venusia, to whom the young
natives went. — magni, magnis :
both referring to size, but perhaps
with a reference to their excess of
muscle over brain. Horace him-
self was small of person.
73. centurionibus: as Venusia.
was a colony, the citizens would be
retired soldiers. In the ancient
method of fighting bodily strength
counted for more than with us, and
a centurion who had risen from the
ranks would be one of the stoutest
of his class. s.
74. loculos : (depending on sus-
pensi taken in a middle sense,
§ 24o. c, probably a Grecism), an-
Swering to the satchel of modern
times. — tabulam : corresponding
to the slate, the ordinary writing
material of the Romans, a thin board
covered with wax.
75. octonos, sc. asses, implied
in aeris, a method of stating sums
of money mot uncommon with the
Romans; about ten cents. A cheap
school, of course, is intended. The
distributive means every month. —
idibus: apparently a common time
for monthly payments.—referentes:
their carrying the pay themselves
also indicated a humble kind of
persons.
76. puerum, i.e. while still a boy.
77. artis : Gr. § 239. c. Rem. —
eques atque senator : i.e. this
mode of education was much above
his station.
78. vestem servosque : i.e. he
dressed his son and gave him a style *
of appearance that would indicate
inherited wealth.
79. magno populo, i.e. in the
56 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
Ipse mihi custos incorruptissimus omnis
circum doctores aderat.
Quid multa ? (
/ Pudicum,
qui primus virtutis honos, servavit ab omni v
non solum facto, verum opprobrio quoque turpi ;
nec timuit sibi ne vitio quis verteret, olim ,* 85
si praeco parvas aut, ut fuit ipse, coactor
mercedes sequerer ; neque ego essem questus : at hoc
11U111C
laus illi debetur et a me gratia maior.
Nil me paeniteat sanum patris huius, eoque
non, ut magna dolo factum negat esse suo pars, 9O
quod non ingenuos habeat clarosque parentes,
crowd of a great city, as opposed to
a little provincial town.
Postremo in magno populo mulierem in-
clutam
Amare oportet omnis qui quod dent habent.
Alaut. 7Truc. I. I. 55. —
ut : as is natural, or expected. —
vidisset . . . crederet: § 3o8. a.
81. custos : it was customary to
send boys in charge of a trustworthy
slave (paedagogus), as nowadays
girls in charge of a nurse. This
office the father performed him-
self.
82. quid multa: sc. dicam, z.e.
why should I say more on a point
that every one understands?
83. honos, orma?/zemt ; purity of
morals would be the first and high-
est virtue.
84. facto . . . opprobrio : sc. he
not only committed no impropriety,
but gave no handle for slander.
85. nec timuit: έ.e. he did not
refrain from giving me this educa-
tion for fear any one should com-
plain that he was educating his son
above his station, even if the son
rose no higher than he himself. —
vitio verteret, charge iz as a fault;
§ 233.
86. praeco, a criemr, an auc-
ziomeer, a very common humble
occupation. — coactor, a collector,
of taxes and the like.
87. mercedes, the wages of a
humble profession. — essem ques-
tus: ì.e. if it had turned out so,
I should not have found fault with
him for unfitting me for that hum-
ble life. In this sentence the close
connection between the * future con-
dition? and the * contrary to fact
construction ' is very apparent, se-
querer being a future condition in
an indirect form changed to past
time, but it also answers for the
condition contrary to fact of essem
questus. — hoc, omz this accoumat,
z.e. because he did so educate me.
— nunc, mozw, as iz ás.
89. paeniteat, etc., coavld 7 re-
gret /.avi mag /.aa' sauc/, a fa//ier ? i.e.
under any supposable circumstances,
an apodosis with an indefinite prot-
asis omitted. The whole idea is,
that while others might be ashamed
of their fathers if they were of low
birth, he had no such feeling.
90. negat, etc.: ì.e. most per-
sons would apologize for Such a
father, saying that it was not their
fault that that they had such, while
admitting that it was a dishonor.
VI. 81—106.]
HORATI SERMONES, 57
sic me defendam. Longe mea discrepat istis
et vox et ratio: nam si natura iuberet
a certis annis aevum remeare peractum,
atque alios legere ad fastum quoscumque parentes 95
optaret sibi quisque, meis contentus, honestos
fascibus et sellis nollem mihi sumere, demens
iudicio volgi, sanus fortasse tuo, quod
nollem onus haud umquam solitus portare molestum. ^
Nam mihi continuo maior quaerenda foret res,
IOO
atque salutandi plures ; ducendus et unus
et comes alter, uti ne solus rusve peregreve
exirem ; plures calones atque caballi
pascendi, ducenda petorrita.
ire licet mulo vel si libet usque Tarentum,
Munc mihi curto
Io5
mantica cui lumbos onere ulceret atque eques armos :
\.
dus: such persons had to take with
92. istis : masc. and dative.
93. ratio, zway of thimÃîmg.— si ',
iuberet: ì.e. if it were the course
of nature that a man after a certain
age might choose his own father
and expunge his previous life, Hor-
ace says he would not change.
94. aevum: acc. after remeare,
like navigare mare, and the like.
95. ad fastum, to suiz his pride.
97. fascibus (the means of hon-
estos), namely, curule offices, of
which the lictor's rods and the cu-
rule chair were the symbols.
98. tuo: Mæcenas had himself
refused to be advanced in official
station, no doubt for the reason
EHorace assigns, his dislike to the
burdensome state and social duties
required of the great.
IOO. res: a larger property would
be necessary to support the dignity
of his position.
IOI. salutandi: the salutatio, or
morning visit of humbler persons
to the great, was a prominent fea-
ture in Roman social life. — ducen-
them a retinue of companions, like
princes in modern times.
Io2. uti ne: apparently an ex-
pression more common in early
Latin in purpose clauses, not differ-
ent essentially from ne. The clause
is here treated as a purpose, but in
English we may translate so as pzo? ,
zo, etc., or so zhaz / could moz, etc.
Io3. calones, etc.: all these
would be necessary for the proper
state of such a person.
IO4. pascendi, mazusz ôe Âepz. —
ducenda, faÂem ima may fraâm. — pe-
torrita (a Gallic word), a four-
wheeled travelling carriage, the ex-
act form of which is not known,
but it must have been more bulky
and roomy tham other forms. —
nunc, etc. (cf. v. 87) : the advan-
tages of his present humble position.
— curto, sorry, /itt/e, only referring
to the size as suited to his dignity.
Io5. Tarentum : i.e. the whole
length and breadth of Italy.
io6. mantica: i.e. with no train
58 HORATI SERMONES. [LIB. I.
obiciet nemo sordes mihi quas tibi, Tilli,
cum Tiburte via praetorem quinque sequuntur
te pueri, lasanum portantes Oenophorumque.
Hoc ego commodius quam tu, praeclare senator, IIO
milibus atque aliis vivo.
Quacumque libido est,
incedo solus ; percontor quanti holus ac far ;
fallacem circum vespertinumque pererro
saepe forum ; adsisto divinis ; inde domum me
ad porri et.ciceris refero laganique catinum. II5
Cena ministratur pueris tribus, et lapis albus
pocula cum cyatho duo sustinet ; adstat echinus
nor baggage except a pair of Saddle-
bags behind him òn the same mule.
IO7. obiciet, etc. : z.e. such a
proceeding would not in Horace
indicate stinginess (sordes), as it
would in the case of Tillius (prob-
ably the same mentioned in v. 24).
Io8. Tiburte via, a frequented
road, and only a short distance,
where one would expect him to
appear properly. — praetorem : as
a magistrate a man ought to keep
up a still more brilliant state. —
quinque : a small number even for
an ordinary gentleman. Cf. 3. II.
Io9. 1asanum : his kettle for
cooking his meals along the road,
instead of stopping at a tavern, or
receiving hospitality which he would
not like to return. — oenophorum,
zwine-bas Âet, carried in the same
manner as the kettle.
I Io. hoc (neuter), ìm z/, is respecz.
— tu : without special reference, but
making the whole vivid by singling
out some one person, as it were.
II I. milibus: neuter.
II 2. solus: see notes on vs. IOI
seq. An example of the thousand
Other things. — percontor: ?.e. he
strolls about the market, and acts as
a humble citizen pricing his own
provisions.
II 3. fallacem circum : the re-
gion of the Circus Maximus (the
valley where was the early commer-
cial forum) seems to have been the
resort of all kinds of loose charac-
ters. Shops occupied the outer walls
of the substructions of the building.
Horace doubtless refers to sharpers,
confidence men, and the like, who
always ply their trade in the lower
parts of a city.
II 3. vespertinum : î. e. when
the refuse of the people were out,
as in any great city.
I I4. divinis: fortune-tellers, as-
trologers, andthelike.— inde : from
his stroll.
I I 5. porri, etc.: as a simple re-
past without dainties, but of course
not to be taken too literally. — la-
ganum, a sort of pancake.
I I6. tribus : of course a small
number for the Romans. — pueris:
the poetic (and colloquial?) use of
the dative to express the agent. —
1apis albus : only white marble,
not the variegated and costly foreign
sorts.
I I7. pocula duo : for wine and
water, which the Romans generally
mixed. — cyatho, the little ladle
for measuring the quantities in mix-
ing. — echinus, an unknown uten-
vI. IO7—126.]
HORATI SERMONES. 59
vilis, cum patera guttus, Campana supellex.
Deinde eo dormitum, non sollicitus, mihi quod cras
surgendum sit mane, obeundus Marsya, qui se I2O
voltum ferre negat Noviorum posse minoris.
Ad quartam iaceo ; post hanc vagor ; aut ego, lecto
aut scripto quod me tacitum iuvet, unguor olivo,
non quo fraudatis immundus Natta lucernis.
Ast ubi me fessum sol acrior ire lavatum • I25
admonuit, fugio campum lusumque trigonem.
sil in the shape of a sea-urchim. It
seems as if it must be a salt-cellar,
the most necessary utensil, and not
elsewhere mentioned, and if so, it
perhaps should not be taken as
earthen like the patera. (Cf. Od.
II. I6. I4.)
I I8. cum patera guttus: for
libations, a platter, and a narrow-
necked pitcher, of common earthen-
ware (Campana), not necessarily
meam, but not silver or gold or
bronze.
I2o. mane, i.e. early. — obeun-
dus Marsya : ì.e. go to the forum.
(See note on verse I 22.) In the
forum stood a statue of Marsyas.
The precise action of the statue to
which Horace refers is uncertain.
Perhaps the agony in his face, or
possibly the factmerely that his back
was turned, is jocosely assumed by
Horace to indicate his dislike of
Novius, evidently a usurer who had
his money-changer's table in the
vicinity.
I2I. minoris shows that a defi-
nite person is meant, the younger
of two of the same name. The
whole reference is unnecessary, but
Horace likes to give a side thrust
wherever he can.
I22. ad quartam : the privilege
of lying abed till ten was not pos-
sessed by the great, who must receive
the salutatio at sunrise, and be es-
corted to the forum. — vagor: i.e.
He takes a stroll (cf. 9. I), or stays
at home, and reads or writes in
solitude (tacitum) till the hour for
eX€rC1S6. COmm €S.
I23. unguor: the ancients pre-
pared themselves for exercise by
stripping and anointing themselves
with oil.
I 24. Natta: another side thrust,
indicating the parsimony of the
unknown person. — immundus :
careless of his person, as a miser. —
lucernis: of course only the poor-
est of oil was used for burning, and
this Natta uses for his body.
I25. sol acrior: about noon. —
1avatum : next the bath, and then
the European breakfast or lunch ;
the first meal (iemtaculum) not
being a formal meal, just as now
in Europe, has not been mentioned
at all.
I 26. Campum lusumque tri-
gonem : another reading is, rabi-
osi tempora signi. Both read-
ings are so old that the passage
would seem to have been altered by
Horace himself, a thing which hap-
pens sometimes with modern poets.
If so, one cannot help thinking he
wrote the one in the text last. —
Campum : the Campus Martius,
where such exercises took place. —
trigonem : used in apposition with
the force of an adjective, a not un-
common construction. The ancients
had several games of ball, but ap-
60 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
Pransus non avide, quantum interpellet inani
ventre diem durare, domesticus otior.
Haec est
vita solutorum misera ambitione gravique ;
his me consolor victurum suavius ac si I30
quaestor avus pater atque meus patruusque fuisset.
VII.
Proscripti Regis Rupili pus atque venenum
hybrida quo pacto sit Persius ultus, opinor
omnibus et lippis notum et tonsoribus esse.
Persius hic permagna negotia dives habebat
Clazomenis, etiam litis cum Rege molestas, 5
parently without the use of the bat.
In this particular game three per-
sons threw tò each other, but in
what the skill consisted is uncertain.
(See Becker's Gal/us Exc. II.). —
[rabiosi, etc.: put loosely for the
extreme heat of midday, though it
should mean the heat of the dog-
days, when the sun is in the Dog,
but there is Horace's favorite con-
fusion of ideas, between the mad
dog and the raging heat. Cf. Æρ.
I. Io. I6, Od. I. I7. I 7.]
I27. pransus, etc.: only a light
breakfast, at about two, to stay his
stomach till dinner, the hour of
which was rather late with him. Cf.
II 3. The dinner hour varied, as with
us, from say three o'clock till seven.
I 3o. his : neuter, and depending
as an ablative of mammer on victu-
fUl1m.
I 31. quaestor: the lowest of the
offices is put for them all. His
reason for preferring the lowest is
not clear. Perhaps it is one of his
unexpected turns, coming in as a
jest upon himself, as it were.
SATIRE 7. This Satire contains
an account of a lawsuit before Bru-
tus when acting as governor of Asia.
Horace was probably present, and
gives this account among the other
trifles upon which he composed his
satires. The point of the whole is
in the pun in v. 35. The occurrence
was in 43 B.C.
I. proscripti, Rupilius Rex, of
Præneste (see v. 28), had served
under Varus, an adherent of Pompey,
in Africa, and had been proscribed
by Augustus. — pus atque vene-
num, gal? and zwemom.
2. hybrida, hafftbreed, son of a
Greek father and Roman mother. —
Persius: evidently a negotiator,
or capitalist, doing busineSs at Clazo-
menæ. See v. 5.
3. lippis, tonsoribus: the physi-
cians? booths and the barbers' shops
were frequented by loungers as well
as customers, so that they were
favorite places for gossip. Cf. Ter.
A/ormio 89, Plaut. Amph. IOI 3.
The disease of sore eyes was very
common at Rome, and was one that
had constant treatment. See I. 5.
3O. -
5. litis: connected humorously
in the same construction as nego-
tia. — molestas, i.e. bitter.
vI. 127—131, vII. 1—17.] HORATI SERMONES. 61
durus homo, atque odio qui posset vincere Regem,
confidens tumidusque, adeo sermonis amari,
Sisennas, Barros ut equis praecurreret albis.
Ad Regem redeo.
Postquam nihil inter utrumque
convenit (hoc etenim sunt omnes iure molesti, IO»
quo fortes, quibus adversum bellum incidit ; inter
Hectora Priamiden animosum atque inter Achillem
ira fuit capitalis, ut ultima divideret mors,
non aliam ob causam nisi quod virtus in utroque
summa fuit: duo si discordia vexet inertis, I5
aut si disparibus bellum incidat, ut Diomedi
cum Lycio Glauco, discedat pigrior, ultro
6. durus homo, a zotg/, caus-
tomer. — odio, bittermess, hateful
conduct. — vincere : implying that
Rupilius was not wanting in this
respect.
7. tumidus, i.e. arrogant.
8. Sisennas, Barros, abusive
persons, otherwise unknown, per-
haps informers, and so famous for
their abusive language in courts of
justice.— equis albis : proverbial;
white horses being supposed to
possess superior swiftness, — wit/,
race-λοrse speed.
9. postquam, etc.: the main
clause is below (pugnat, v. I9). —
utrumque, f/ae favo, a meaning that
this word often has without any dis-
tributive idea.
Io. nihil convenit : i.e. they
could come to no agreement.— hoc :
correlative with quo, and used as
if the adjectives were comparative.
The parenthesis gives the reason
why they couldn't agree. — iure,
matura??y, regular?y.
I I. fortes, brave, i.e. good fight-
ers. — quibus, zwhem they fa// imto,
etc., or simply who fal? (changing
the construction), etc. — adversum
bellum, opposimg sträfe : tautologi-
cal, but not out of place, as giving
the idea of mutuality.
I2. Hectora: an illustration of
his general statement. — inter :
sometimes umnecessarily repeated,
as here.
I3. capitalis, mortal, deadZy, i.e.
so that they sought each other's
life. — ultima, om24y . . . az Zasz, i.e.
death at the end of their lives.
I 5. duo, etc.: a proof from the
opposite, in case of two cowards or
a brave warrior and a coward. —
vexet: the condition is a future
less vivid one, but is meant to be
general.
I6. Diomedi: see J7. VI. I 19,
where, however, Glaucus' cowardice
does not appear. The heroes refuse
to fight because of ancient friend-
ship, but exchange armor, an act
which amounted to agifton Glaucus*
part. Horace may have purposely
put this construction on the acts,
or it may have been already done
through the belittling spirit of later
times.
17. ultro, zo booz : in addition to
declining to fight, the coward goes
so far as to give something to buy
off his adversary.
62 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
muneribus missis) : Bruto praetore tenente
ditem Asiam, Rupili et Persi par pugnat, uti non
compositum melius cum Bitho Bacchius.
In ius 2O
acres procurrunt, magnum spectaculum uterque.
Persius exponit causam ; ridetur ab omni
conventu ; laudat Brutum laudatque cohortem :
solem Asiae Brutum appellat, stellasque salubris
appellat comites, excepto Rege ; canem illum, 25
invisum agricolis sidus, venisse.
Ruebat,
flumen ut hibernum, fertur quo rara securis.
Tum Praenestinus salso multoquo fluenti
expressa arbusto regerit convicia, durus
vindemiator et invictus, cui saepe viator 3o
cessisset, magna compellans voce cuculum.
18. praetore : he is called praetor
because he had held that office the
year before, though his command in
Asia was really a consular one. But
the word is also used generically of
a governor or judicial magistrate,
and it may be so used here.
I9. par pugnat: Rupilius and
Persius are matched' as gladiators,
or emter the arema ; par (neuter) is
the technical word.
2o. compositum melius, a bez-
zer matchea, pair.— Bacchius: sub-
ject of sit, having for its predicate
par, to be supplied with composi-
tum. — in ius : the proceedings be-
fore a judge were said to be in iure,
zwi//, in z/íe ba?r.
21. procurrunt: of course with
the figure of a battle or gladiatorial
contest.
22. ridetur, raises a lazagh, by
his presentation of the case.
23. conventu : a technical ex-
pression for the persons who met
at any place in the provinces, at a
term of court, to have justice ad-
ministered (cf. conventus agere,
used of the governor). — cohortem
(amicorum), the suize of young
men who constituted a kind of staff.
25. canem, the dog-star (cf. 6.
126).
26. agricolis: ì.e. simply as sug-
gesting drought, which is injurious
to their interests. — ruebat, poured
fort/, a torremt.
27. rara securis : i.e. in the
depth of the woods where the tor-
rent is fullest.
28. Praenestinus : see note v. I.
— salso, etc., om Âám Zväz/, /, is ôáz-
ter torrepaz. — multo, with Persio,
adjective for adverb.
29. expressa, zwrumg from, in
response to the taunts of the passer-
by (see note on v. 3o). — re-gerit,
Âzzr/s δacÅ.
3o. vindemiator(four syllables),
/iàe a, etc.: in many cases the Latin
allows the figure to be identified
with the object where we cannot go
beyond a simile. — invictus, moz to
ὸe outdome. — viator, the passer-êy,
on the road.
3 I. cessisset: characteristic sub-
junctive. — cuculum : it appears
that the country people of Italy
VUI. I8—35, VIII. I-4.]
HORATI SERMONES. 63
At Graecus, postquam est Italo perfusus aceto,
Persius exclamat : * Per magnos, Brute, deos- te
oro, qui reges consueris tollere, cur non
hunc Regem iugulas ?
rumst.'
Operum hoc, mihi crede, tuo-
35
VIII.
Olim truncus eram ficulnus, inutile lignum,
cum faber, incertus scamnum faceretne Priapum,
maluit esse deum. Deus inde ego, furum aviumque
maxima formido ; nam fures dextra coercet
were much given to coarse language
and rude abuse of each other, a ten-
dency that gave rise to two or three
Rinds of dramatic composition, and
was not without influence on satire
itself. Here the passer-by is sup-
posed to call out to the belated
vine-pruner, ** Cuckoo,” meaming
that the cuckoo had come. The
Billingsgate of Rupilius is likened
to the rude torrent poured out by
the vine-dresser in reply. As often,
Rupilius is not merely likened to the
rustic, but identified with him.
32. at Graecus : inserted to give
the contrast of the Greek's fine wit,
to the coarse vituperation of the
Italian (Italo aceto).
34. reges: alluding to Junius
Βrutus, the expeller of the Tarquins.
— tollere, pu? ouz of the way, like
Shakespeare's ** taking off.”
35. Regem : the pun is of course
wholly lost in English, but the word
is so familiar to English ears that
the connection is suggestive. —
operum (predicate gen., Gr. § 2I4,
c), a fi/tíng zas for you : this rex is
a worse nuisance than any you or
your ancestors have removed.
SATIRE 8. This Satire is sup-
posed to be written in ridicule of
the same Gratidia referred to in
Apodes III., VIII. 5, (?) and XVII.
It represents an incantation scene,
in which the womam, by the aid of a
sorceress, performs magic rites to
recover the alienated affections of a
lover. This main idea of the Satire
is worked up with a number of de-
tails in Horace's manner, which
present the scene in a still more
ridiculous light. • The eighth Ec-
logue of Virgil may be compared
for the incantations, which were no
doubt common enough at that time.
As the fig-tree gives a very poor
wood, it is very likely that the
whole is founded upon a sudden
cracking of some wooden image of
Priapus in Mæcenas' garden.
2. scamnum, etc.: i.e. utrum
scamnum an Priapum (see Gr.
§ 2I I. a). — Priapum : a not very
highly esteemed divinity of the fer-
tility of the earth, originally brought
from Lampsacus, whose image was
set up in gardens as half god and
half scarecrow. It was customary
for poets to put into his mouth any
poetry too indecent for other spon-
sors, and here the abuse of the
women is heightened by making
him the spokesman.
4. formido, a terror, as in Eng-
lish. — fures dextra: a sickle or
64 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
obscenoque ruber porrectus ab inguine palus; 5
ast importunas volucres in vertice harundo
terret fixa vetatque novis considere in hortis.
Huc prius angustis eiecta cadavera cellis
conservus vili portanda locabat in arca ;
hoc miserae plebi stabat çommune sepulchrum, IO
Pantolabo scurrae Nomentanoque nepoti:
mille pedes in fronte, trecentos cippus in agrum
hic dabat, heredes monumentum ne sequeretur.
club was usually held in his right
hand (cf. Virg. Georg. IV. I IO).
5. ruber: the god was regularly
painted red.
6. harundo : î. e. a reed waving
in the wind and serving as a scare-
CrOW. -
7. novis . . . hortis : Mæcenas
had laid out a magnificent garden
on the Esquiline, on a spot occupied
from very ancient times as a burial
place. Tombs of very great antiq-
uity and also common burial places
have lately been excavated in that
regiom. This particular spot seems
to have been only a part of the burial
place, devoted to the poorer classes.
8. eiecta, /, ust/ed out : simply
heightening the picture of the mis-
ery of the slaves, and not probably
referring to any special usage. The
body of a respectable person would
be elatum.
9. conservus : the slaves were
often united into societies for the
purposes of burial; and when they
were not, doubtless they took care
of the burial of their fellows. Many
tombstones are found erected by
fellow-slaves and fellow-freedmen.
— locabat: ì.e. the fellow-slaves
paid the expenses of the burial, and
contracted with the regular under-
takers.
Io. hoc : i.e. the public lot de-
scribed in v. I2, but agreeing with
sepulchrum. — stabat sepul-
chrum : the word stabat would
seem to imply a real tomb, but as
sepulchrum is used of any burial
place, stabat goes with it naturally
in the sense of zwas.
I I. Pantolabo, etc. (Gez-zv/.az-
3/o/z-cam): one of Horace's favorite
side thrusts at two poor creatures
whom he despises. — scurrae :
many persons in antiquity literally
lived by their wits, getting invita-
tions to dinner in return for the
amusement they afforded, acting
somewhat like the court fools of
later times. Naturally, being with-
out visible means of support, they
were desp1sed by thelr more fortu-
nate patrons.
I 2. in fronte, i.e. om. f/.e street.
— cippus, a Small square pillar
with the inscription to mark the
place and size of the lot. Such in-
scriptions are numerous. Æ.g.
D. M. FORTVNATO IVLI FRONTONIS
ACTORI
PATRATA CONIVE BENEMERENTI ET
FILI FECERVNT IN F P XX IN AGR P XXV
HMHNS.
(Hoc Momae zyzemzzzzzaec Heredes Ve
Sequatur.)
— in agrum, in depf/è.
I 3. dabat, assignea, for a burial
place for the people. — heredes,
etc.: î. e. separating the lot from
the property of the person who
gave it. — monumentum : refer-
VIII. 5-23.]
HORATI SERMONES. 65
Nunc licet Esquiliis habitare salubribus atque
aggere in aprico spatiari, quo modo tristes I5
albis informem spectabant ossibus agrum ;
cum mihi non tantum furesque feraeque, suetae
hunc vexare locum, curae sunt atque labori,
quantum carminibus quae versant atque venenis
humanos animos.
Has nullo perdere possum 2O
nec prohibere modo, simul ac vaga luna decorum
protulit os, quin Ossa legant herbasque nocentis.
Vidi egomet nigra succinctam vadere palla
ring looselyto the place, but quoting
the most common form of the pro-
vision, as above given. 1ocus, which
is often used, would be more exact.
— ne sequeretur, i.e. zvii/, z/ie pro-
vìsìom z/iaz, etc., quoted indirectly
from the language of the inscrip-
tions. Horace's form implies a di-
rect sequatur, which does not occur
in full in inscriptions. The word,
However, is very rarely written out in
full, and the sense of non sequitur,
which does occur, is really the same.
I4. nunc, etc.: later, apparently,
the burial place had been discon-
tinued in part, though tombs farther
out, perhaps beyond the agger of
Servius, were still remaining (see
v. 36). — salutaribus, ?.e. a/za, fima!
zz zw/o/esome ; in a predicate use.
I 5. aggere: the great earth-wall
built on the east side of the city by
Servius Tullius, part of which still
exists. Probably the ground was
appropriated to ordinary uses as far
as this, still leaving tombs beyond.
— quo, equal to ubi: referring to
the Esquiline in general, not to the
agger. — tristes, sadZy.
I6. informem, λέdeoaus.
I7. cum, zwhile : the construc-
tion seems to be that of cum ìmz/er-
sum (Gr. § 325, 6). — fures: to
steal the fruit, cf. v. 4.—ferae : pos-
sibly birds and beasts of prey pròwl-
ing for the bones, etc., but more
probably in search of the fruit, as in
v. 4, aves. Cf. also curae atque
1abori, v. I8. — suetae: three syl-
lables.
I9. carminibus atque venenis,
spe//s ana' cÄarmzs, referring to the
whole magical paraphernalia. —
quae, ἐλè zwomzem zw/o, i.e. who came
to this old cemetery for magic.
Everything connected with death
has been an instrument of witch-
craft in all ages.
2o. perdere, comfouma ; used
loosely as the active of pereant,
which would be his wish for them.
2I. vaga: i.e. among the stars.
22. protulit: έ.e. probably at the
rising of the full moon, which was
a favorite time for magic. — ossa
herbasque : these were particularly
efficacious. Cf. Æροde V. I7 and
note to v. I9. -
23. vidi: here begins the special
incident, and in a kind of epic style,
to produce a pseudo-pathetic effect.
— nigra: as the funereal color. Cf.
the ** black art.” — palla: we can
not be sure exactly what sort of a
dress she wore, but it was no doubt
different from the ordinary wear.
The palla seems to have been a
plain piece of cloth for drapery, but
capable of adjustment to the body
by a girdle and by clasps on the
66 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
Canidiam pedibus nudis passoque capillo,
cum Sagana maiore ululantem. Pallor utrasque 25
fecerat horrendas aspectu.
Scalpere terram
unguibus et pullam divellere mordicus agnam
coeperunt ; cruor in fossam confusus, ut inde
manis elicerent, animas responsa daturas.
Lanea et effigies erat, altera cerea : maior 3O
lanea, quae poenis compesceret inferiorem ; -
cerea suppliciter stabat servilibus, ut quae
iam peritura, modis.
Hecaten vocat altera, saevam
altera Tisiphonen ; serpentis atque videres
infernas errare canes, Lunamque rubentem, 35
ne foret his testis, post magna latere sepulchra.
Mentior at si quid, merdis caput inquiner albis
shoulders. Probably it was also
girded up shorter than usual, as is
indicated by succinctam (see Rich,
JOictiomary of Amtiquities).
25. Sagana maiore : there seems
no reason why the natural meaning
of ** the elder of two Saganas,'° both
sorceresses, should not be taken.
The person is mentioned again in
Æροde V. 25. — ululantem : repeat-
ing the incantations in a tone suit-
able to the occasion ; used regu-
larly of women's cries. — pallor:
naturally the officiating persons are
frightened also (Æροae V. 27).
26. scalpere terram, etc.: the
regular rite in necromancy seems to
have been to dig a ditch and sacri-
fice a black sheep into it. This
process was to make the shades
give prophetic answers, which are
also referred to in v. 4I, the nature
of which, however, does not appear.
Still we need not expect the story
to be exact about such a matter.
Cf. next note for a similar loose
Statement.
27. mordicus: to give the pic-
ture of furies, as it were.
3o. lanea: the process here is
often referred to. The two puppets
represent the person seeking the
enchantment and the one to be af-
fected, one being subject to the
action of heat, and the other not.
In Virgil (Æc/. VIII. 8o) they are
of clay and wax respectively. The
waxen one is to be melted in the
fire of love, while the other remains
unaffected. — maior: as indicating
superior power and mastery. The
whole implies that whatever the
puppet suffers will be transferred by
the magic art to the person repre-
sented. So the symbolism is carried
as far as possible, even to peritura
(suppliciter stabat).
32. servilibus, i.e. die in tor-
ment. Probably in all this two or
three rites are confounded (cf. Vir-
gil, Æc/. VIII. 8o), as also in the fol-
lowing. — serpentis atque canes,
attendants upon Hecate.
35. rubentem : the moon is com-
ically represented as blushing, and
hiding behind the great tombs in
the neighborhood.
37. mentior, etc.: the adjuration
viii. 24-5o.]
EHORATI SERMONES. 67
corvorum, atque in me veniat mictum atque cacatum
Iulius et fragilis Pediatia furque Voranus. -
Singula quid memorem ? quo pacto alterna loquentes 4o
umbrae cum Sagana resonarent triste et acutum,
utque lupi barbam variae cum dente colubrae
abdiderint furtim terris, et imagine cerea
largior arserit ignis, et ut non testis inultus
horruerim voces Furiarum et facta duarum : 45
nam, displosa sonat quantum vesica, pepedi
diffissa nate ficus : at illae currere in urbem ;
Canidiae dentes, altum Saganae caliendrum
excidere atque herbas atque incantata lacertis
vincula cum magno risuque iocoque videres. 5o
gives a comic effect to the story,
just as if one Said, “You may not
believe it, but it's a fact,” at the
end of a Munchausen tale. Of
course his oath is suited to his
nature.
39. Iulius, etc.: another side
thrust. The first persom is unknown,
but he must be the same sort of per-
son as the others who are described.
— fragilis, %e zweaÂ/img y of effemi-
nacy. — Pediatia: really a man,
but spoken of thus on account of
his effeminacy.
4o. alterna, ?.e. of questions and
a.IYSW€rS.
41. resonarent: the imperfect
cannot be explained. Either the
reading resonarint ought to be
adopted, or we must suppose it a
lapse on Horace's part. — triste et
acutum : the feeble and piping
voice regularly attributed to the
shades. Cf. Aem. VI. 493.
42. lupi barbam : these seem to
have been charms against opposing
magic on the part of others.
43. cerea: dissyllabic by Syni-
Z€S1S.
44. arserit: έ.e. the wax melted
and ran into the fire. This has not
been mentioned before, but is un-
derstood as one of the regular ac-
companiments. Cf. note to v. 3o.
— ut non, etc., hozv iz zwas moz as
am unavemged spectator Aehaz, etc.
45. Furiarum : cf. note to v. 27.
46. quantum : a kind of cogn.
acc. with sonat.
48. dentes, false zeez/., which
were not uncommon among the
ancients. — caliendrum, some sort
of a headdress, the form of which is
unknown. It was evidently, how-
ever, tall, and perhaps some Eastern
cap, like the Persian tiara, for in-
Stance.
49. herbas, vincula: the ma-
chinery of their magic that they
held in their arms. — incantata,
equal to emc/îantea, i.e. arranged
with spells, solemn formulæ to give
magic power. The vincula would
be love-knots to bind fast the per-
son to be affected. The whole is
probably not very exact.
5o. videres, you might have seem
(Gr. § 3I I, a).
68 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
IX.
Ibam forte via Sacra, sicut meus est mos,
nescio quid meditans nugarum, totus in illis :
accurrit quidam notus mihi nomine tantum,
arreptaque manu, * Quid agis, dulcissime rerum ?'
* suaviter, ut nunc est,' inquam, * et cupio omnia quae
9
V1S.
Cum adsectaretur, * Numquid vis ? ' occupo.
* Noris nos ' inquit ; * docti sumus.'
SATIRE g. This Satire, one of
the most famous, treats of the efforts
of a pushing aspirant to social rec-
ognition to attach himself to Hor-
ace from ambitious motives. In a.
society so aristocratic, and at the
same time so unstable, as was the
Roman at this period, social ambi-
tions must have had a very active
stimulation. Horace's own rise in
life had been extraordinary, and
more vulgar aspirants and Snobs
could not but attribute it to the
same selfish and pushing arts that
they were in the habit of using, and
endeavor to unite ' with him, and
get his support for their own ad-
vancement.
I. ibam : cf. 6. I I2 and I 22. —
via sacra: the Boulevards of Rome,
the favorite lounging-place, along-
side the forum, and where the most
brilliant out-door life was carried
OI1.
2. nugarum : probably Some ef-
fort im verse.
3. accurrit: his manner of ap-
proach already suggests his effusive-
116SS.
4. arrepta: this action is also
excessive ; a simple salve would
have been enough. — quid agis :
the common very familiar saluta-
tion, like Hozv are you ? or Hozw
5
At ille
Hic ego * Pluris
goes it ? — dulcissime, etc., 7/zy
deamresz fe//ozw ; still more familiar.
— rerum : partitive genitive (equiv-
alent to “in the world **), but the
gender ofthe adjectiveis determined
by the sense. The best translation
is that given under the previous
word.
5. suaviter, etc.: a polite but
distant reception of the salute; es-
pecially is cupio, etc. (I wish you
every success, I'm sure) only an ex-
pression of thanks for his interest.
— ut nunc est, i.e. as the zîmes go.
6. adsectaretur, fo//owed me zup,
as Horace proceeds on his way. —
numquid vis: the regular formula
of leave-taking, 77, ere's mot/img /
cam do for you, zs z/ere ?— occupo,
/ amtìcìpate Ààmz zwóz/,.
7. noris nos, yes, 7/2a/ée my ac-
qua înfamce. It was not uncom-
mon to reply to this formula in a
sense contrary to its meaning, with
a kind of pleasantry, as, Yes, faÂe
care of yourse/f; but here the snob
will not be turned off, and so rudely
tells the object of his address. The
verb properly depends, on vis. —
docti, an accomp/ished artist, ì.e.
a trained literary man, and diner
out, cf. v. 22. — pluris, etc.: like
O imdeed / / s/al/ zhìm à more of
3/oa, 7'm sure, a cool reply.
IX. I-23.]
HORATI SERMONES. 69
hoc ' inquam * mihi eris.'
Misere discedere quaerens,
ire modo ocius, interdum consistere, in aurem
dicere nescio quid puero, cum sudor ad imos IO
manaret talos.
* O te, Bolane, cerebri
felicem ! ' aiebam tacitus ; cum quidlibet ille
garriret, vicos, urbem laudaret.
lUt i11i
nil respondebam, * Misere cupis' inquit * abire ;
iamdudum video ; sed nil agis ; usque tenebo ; I5
persequar: hinc quo nunc iter est tibi?'
* Nil opus est te
circumagi; quendam volo visere non tibi notum ;
trans Tiberim longe cubat is, prope Caesaris hortos.'
* Nil habeo quod agam, et non sum piger; usque sequarte.'
Demitto auriculas, ut iniquae mentis asellus, 2O
cum gravius dorso subiit onus.
Incipit ille :
* Si bene me novi, non Viscum pluris amicum,
non Varium facies ; nam quis me scribere pluris
8. hoc, i.e. on account of your
accomplishments. — misere quae-
rens, 7wretched/y am xious.
IO. puero: pretending to have
some business with his slave who
was following him. — sudor: from
desperation.
I I. Bolane, an unknown per-
son of a hot temper. — cerebri:
governed by felicem, Gr. § 2I8. c.
I2. felicem, equal to ölessea, zwit/i,
because he would not be restrained
by politeness from shaking off the
intruder, as Horace was. — tacitus,
zo myself.
I 3. vicos, urbem : i.e. talking
about the parts of the city as they
went On, for the purpose of making
conversation.
I4. misere, etc.: the bore could
not help seeing that his presence
was unwelcome, and so resorts to
the vulgar expedient ofjesting about
it in a way which would be almost
rude even in fhe greatest intimacy.
I 5. nil agis, iz's of mo use. —
usque tenebo, / wi// sticâ fasz to
3/otz.
I6. persequar, / zwi/? /o//ozv you
aup. — quo : interrogative, zwhither ?
zJ/ìicà zway ? — nil opus, etc., o/ì,
z/iere's mo occasiom for yoz to go out
Qfyour zway.
I7. quendam, a mzam.
I8. cubat, /ies sicÂ. — hortos,
an estate on the Jamiculum, left by
Julius Cæsar to the Roman people.
2o. demitto auriculas: as an
indication of forced submission to a
disagreeable necessity. — iniquae
mentis, of su//em temper.
2I. The bore now gradually leads
up to his accomplishments to show
what a useful friend he would be
in society.
22. Viscum, Vilius Viscus Ner-
vius; cf. I. IO. 83, II. 8. 2o.
23. Varium : cf. I. 5. 4o. — nam
quis, etc. : for Horace's estimate
of this accomplishmcnt, see I. 4. I4.
70 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
aut citius possit versus ? quis membra movere
mollius ?
invideat quod et Hermogenes ego canto.' ag
Interpellandi locus hic erat: “ Est tibi mater,
cognati, quis te salvo est opus ?'— * Haud mihi quisquam ;
omnis composui.' — * Felices !
Nunc ego resto.
Confice ; namque instat fatum mihi triste, Sabella
quod puero cecinit divina mota anus urna : 3o
“ Ha///c //eque dira ve/zema, nec /iosticus a?gferet ensis,
7aec /aterum do/or aut tussìs, mec tarda podagra ;
garru/us /au/tc qatando consum2et c?/mq/te ; /oquacis,
si sapiat, vitet, simu/ atque adoleverit aetas.
» » )
Ventum erat ad Vestae, quarta iam parte diei 35
praeterita, et casu tunc respondere vadato
debebat ; quod ni fecisset, perdere litem.
24. membra movere, damce.
25. mollius, more gracefully.
Damcing was a rather disreputable
accomplishment among the Romans
at this time (cf. Cic. pro A/ur. VI.
I 3). — quod : the acc. of the thing
after invideat. Its antecedent id or
tale would be the object of canto.
26. hic locus erat, etc.: appar-
ently the opportunity was his men-
tion of his accomplishments, to
which Horace replies, as if feeling
that so accomplished a man was too
valuable to expose to danger; ** have
you amyfriends dependent on you ?”
implying that there is danger in
going to see the sick person. The
answer destroys this hope of getting
rid of him, and Horace's reply as
far as v. 35 must be supposed to
be made aside in his own thought.
It is obvious that if Horace's good
nature would allow him to speak in
that tone to the fellow, he would
have got rid of him long before.
29. confice : jocosely said, as if
he had bored all his friends to
death, and now was going to crown
the whole by killing off Horace.
Of course the allusion to his destiny
is an invention. — Sabella: the
Sabines and the mountain people
generally were famous for super-
stitions and divination, acting, it
would seem, as a sort of gipsies.
3o. divina, prophetic. — urna, in
which the lots (sortes) were cast
(cf. Od. II. 3. 26), and shaken
(mota), whereupom one came to
the surface, which was drawn out.
32. tussis: i.e. consumption. —
tarda, crípp/img : a transferred epi-
thet ; it was the patient that was
slow.
33. quando ... cumque, az so///e
zîmze or ofher, whenever it is.
35. Vestae (Gr. § 214. b) : in
their ramble they had come to the
south end of the Forum, near which
was the temple of Vesta and the
courts of justice. — quarta: i.e. it
was past nine.
36. vadato, a p/aimziff im a
/awsuit, who had made him give
bail to appear on this day.
37. debebat, he zwas boumd. —
fecisset: in informal indirect dis-
course for fecerit of the direct (cf.
IX. 24—48.]
HORATI SERMONES. e- 71 .
* Si me amas,' inquit, * paulum hic ades.'
* Inteream, si
aut valeo stare aut novi civilia iura;
et propero quo scis.' ' Dubius sum quid faciam,' inquit, 4o
* tene relinquam an rem.'
ille,
et praecedere coepit.
cum victore, sequor.
* Me, sodes.'
* Non facianm,'
Ego, ut contendere durum est
* Maecenas quomodo tecum ?'
hinc repetit ; * paucorum hominum et mentis bene sanae ;
nemo dexterius fortuna est usus.
Haberes 45
magnum adiutorem, posset qui ferre secundas,
hunc hominem velles si tradere ; dispeream, ni
summosses omnis.'
reddidisses, Od. I. IO. 9), as it
would appear in the terms of the
contract of bail. — perdere (with
debebet): i.e. the case would go
against him by default.
38. si me amas, equal to £f yote
ze/i/Z δe so £ima. Prosody, s? má ãmás.
e shortened before a, as in Greek.
— ades, attend! me ; as advocatus,
not an advocate, but an adviser and
friend to suggest the law and give
him moral support. — inteream,
comfoumd me. The condition (si
valeo, etc.) is of the kind where
no opinion is expressed, and a wish
takes the place of the indicative in
apodosis.
39. stare: best taken literally,
“ bear the fatigue of the court.” —
novi, etc.: i.e. he would be ofno use.
J 4I. rem, his case. — sodes (si
audes, if you please), i.e. by a//
7/2 ea272S.
43. victore: i.e. he had beaten
him so many times that Horace was
now discouraged and let him have
his own way. — Maecenas, etc. :
the bore now comes to his real
object. — quomodo, equal to om
zωλat terms.
44. hinc repetit, he begins again
* Non isto vivimus illic
(his talk) zwit/, that. — paucorum,
etc., offe7v friemds, amd has a very
leve/ /ìead, i.e. has made a shrewd
use of his luck. This is said.as if
Maecenas' choice offriends had been
prompted by such motives.
45. haberes (in the contrary to
fact construction) implies, of course,
that Horace has no desire of mak-
ing his acquaintance, but thereby
makes the request all the more im-
portunate.
46. secundas (sc. partes), etc.,
support you, or with another figure,
play imto your hands.
47. hunc hominem, your humz-
óle servamt. — tradere, i/ztroduce,
' a technical term, almost. — dispe-
ream : the same construction as in
v. 38; its protasis is the truth of
the proposition ni summosses,
which is itself conditioned on the
preceding si velles.
48. summosses: the pluperfect
seems to refer to the rapidity of the
action ; you zwould shove them, a/?
aside ìm a zwämä/img. Horace here-
upon endeavors to persuade the bore
that he misunderstands the situa-
tion ; the coterie has no such rela-
tions among its members. -
- 72 • HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
quo tu rere modo; domus hac nec purior ulla est
nec magis his aliena malis ; nil mi officit,' inquam, 5O
* ditior hic aut est quia doctior ; est locus uni
cuique suus.'
sic habet.'
proximus esse.'
* Magnum narras, vix credibile !'
* Accendis, quare cupiam magis illi
* Velis tantummodo: quae tua virtus,
* Atqui
expugnabis; et est qui vinci possit, eoque 55
difficilis aditus primos habet.'
* Haud mihi deero:
muneribus servos corrumpam ; non, hodie si
exclusus fuero, desistam ; tempora quaeram,
occurram in triviis, deducam. Nil sine magno
vita labore dedit mortalibus.'
)
Haec dum agit, ecce 6o
Fuscus Aristius occurrit, mihi carus et illum
qui pulchre nosset.
Consistimus.
* Quo tendis ?' rogat et respondet.
* Unde venis ? ' et
Vellere coepi
et prensare manu lentissima brachia, nutans,
49. domus: of Maecenas. — pu-
rior, more free.
5o. aliena, at variamce zwit/ì.
52. magnum, etc.: the bore can-
not believe in such a state ofthings;
so he flatteringly says thatit increases
his eagerness to get into the set.
54. Horace now changes his tone,
and says humorously that he has
only to try and he will succeed, no
doubt covertly alluding to the bore's
prowess in his own case.
55. est qui, etc.: i.e. he has his
weak spots, and so guards more
carefully the first access to him.
56. Horace shows the worthless
character of the fellow by the view
which he takes of Horace's sugges-
tion, and the means which he pro-
poses to use.
58. tempora, favorable opportu-
poities.
59. triviis, az the street cormens.
— deducam, escorz to z/ie Ro??z//z,
a technical expression. — nil, etc.:
the comic effect is heightened by
the use of a proverb which in the
mouth of a hero would be com-
mendable. The kind of labor re-
ferred to, however, makes it con-
temptible here.
6o. haec dum agit, zJ/2i/e he is
talÃîmg in Z/iis zway.
6I. Fuscus Aristius, one of the
poet's best friends. Cf. I. IO. 83,
Æρ. I. IO, Od. I. 22.
62. nosset: a characteristic rel-
ative clause, showing clearly the
nature of such clauses by its con-
nection with an adjective, to which
it is equivalent. — unde venis, etc. :
ordinary familiar salutations. — ^
63. rogat, etc., is asÂed and am-
szverea', on both sides. — vellere,
etc.: the poet begins to nudge him
(strictly, pull his toga), and make
signs for Fuscus to relieve him by
claiming an engagement with him,
or the like.
64. lentissima, um responsâve,
which did not resist enough to feel
the pull.
IX, 49—78.]
HORATI SERMONES. 73
distorquens oculos, ut me eriperet.
Male salsus 65
ridens dissimulare ; meum iecur urere bilis.
* Certe nescio quid secreto velle loqui te
aiebas mecum.'
* Memini bene, sed meliore
tempore dicam ; hodie tricesima sabbata: vin' tu
curtis Iudaeis oppedere ?'
* religio est.'
multorum.
tam nigrum surrexe mihi!
sub cultro linquit.
* Nulla mihi,' inquam, 7o
* At mi ; sum paulo infirmior, unus
Ignosces; alias loquar.'
Fugit improbus ac me
Casu venit obvius illi
Huncine solem
adversarius, et, * Quo tu, turpissime ? ' magna 75
inclamat voce, et * Licet antestari ?'
Ego vero'
oppono auriculam. Rapit in ius ; clamor utrimque,
undique concursus. Sic me servavit Apollo.
65. male salsus, the zwicÄed zwag,
wishing to play a malicious joke on
Horace.
66. dissimulare, pretended not
to notice it. — bilis: the bile was
anciently supposed to be the seat of
the passions, here of anger.
67. certe, etc., /'m sure you zwere
saying, etc., making up an engage-
ment for the purpose.
69. tricesima: the Jews seem
to have had a festival once a month,
not strictly the thirtieth Sabbath,
but so called because of the familiar
weekly Sabbath. The mention of
the Jews at all shows an extraor-
dinary spread of their rites. — vin*,
the colloquial form for visne, as in
the comedy.
7o. curtis,
pedere : a coarse term for ámszu/t,
of course by. doing business on their
holy day. s.
7 I. religio, religious scruple. —
infirmior: rather weak in those
matters, not strong-minded enough
to be free from superstition.
72. huncine, etc.: a construc-
circumcised. — op-
tion especially common in the Com-
edy, equal to zo z/. im/è f/.az zÃîs, etc.
73. surrexe,' old form for sur-
rexisse, cf. 5. 79.
74. sub cultro: a figure from
the sacrifice.
75. adversarius, the same per-
son referred to as vadatus in v. 36.
— quo (sc. is), i.e. why don't you
appear?
76. licet antestari: the formula
used to appeal to a person, asking
his permission to use him as a wit-
ness ; here, of course, to establish
the fact that the man was found
breaking his bail, in which case the
plaintiff could seize him.
77. auriculam : the party seems
to have touched the ear, the seat of
memory, to warn the witness ' to
remember the circumstances. See
A c/. VI. 4, and Fig. 2I, Greenough's
Virgil.
78. Apollo: probably only as
the president of the Muses, and
patron of poetry and guardiam of
poets. The poet's usual guardian is
Mercury (Od. II. I7. 29).
74 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
Lucílè, qaza7/z szs ///e//dosus, teste Catome,
defensore tuo, pervênca//z, quâ Z//a/e factos
emze/tdare parat versazs ; /3oo lepezazs z7/e,
quo vir est 7//e/ior, longe szótá/zor illo,
quâ multu/// puer et lorís et fumábus audis 5
exhortatus, ut esset opem, quâ ferre poetis
amitzquis posset contra fastidia mostra,
gra//z//zazzcór?///z eqzzzzzzz/z doczzsszzpzzzs. U7 redea7/z z//a/c :
Nempe incomposito dixi pede currere versus
Lucili.
ut non hoc fateatur ?
Quis tam Lucili fautor inepte est
At idem, quod sale multo
urbem defricuit, charta laudatur eadem.
SATIRE Io. This satire contains
a defence of Horace's criticisms on
Lucilius in Sat. I. 4, and a general
defence of his own style of compo-
sition. \
I. The first eight lines, printed
in italics, are found in some but
not all of the Mss., and their authen-
ticity is denied by most scholars.
It does not seem likely from the
internal evidence that they are Hor-
ace's work. It is barely possible
that they may have been originally
written by him, and afterwards left
out upon a revision of the Satire.
But even this is not likely. — Cato-
ne, Valerius Cato, a poet and gram-
marian, of Gaul, who, we may
conclude, undertook to modernize
Lucilius.
3. hoc, so much, correlative with
quo.
4. illo: apparently refers to an-
other emender of Lucilius, after-
wards referred to as equitum doc-
tissimus.
5. qui: referring to illo.
6. exhortatus: used passively
like many participles of deponents.
— opem ferre, come zo z/ae resczze o/,
7.e. by modernizing and emending,
as English poets have sometimes
done with Chaucer.
7. fastidia, fastidious taste.
8. illuc : must be taken as refer-
ring to the general subject of Lucil-
ius, from which he has diverged in
his talk about his emenders. But
the whole eight limes are very ob-
scure, and perhaps not worth under-
standing.
I. nempe, yes, or èrue ; in an-
swer to a criticism on his remark
about Lucilius, in I. 4. 8 and II,
and opposed by at in v. 3. — incom-
posito, ca?re/ess or roug^ measure.
2. inepte : modifying fautor,
which is used in the sense of am
adjective. In translating, it is bet-
ter to make fautor a noun, and
inepte an adjective.
3. idem, Àe, az z/ie same zi/ze. —
sale : used often. of witty satire,
but the figure is here made more
vivid by defricuit. It may be
imitated by made the city smart,
zwit/, causzic zviz. ?
4. charta: cf. I. 5. Io4. — 1au-
datur: see I. 4. I—8, where he is
spoken of in the highest terms.
x. I-I8.]
HORATI SERMONES. 75
Nec tamen, hoc tribuens, dederim quoque cetera; nam
S1C
5
et Laberi mimos ut pulchra poemata mirer.
Ergo non satis est risu diducere rictum
auditoris (et est quaedam tamen hic quoque virtus);
est brevitate opus, ut currat sententia neu se
impediat verbis lassas onerantibus auris ; IO
et sermone opus est modo tristi, saepe iocoso,
defendente vicem modo rhetoris atque poetae,
interdum urbani, parcentis viribus atque
extenuantis eas consulto.
Ridiculum acri
fortius et melius magnas plerumque secat res. I5
Illi, scripta quibus comoedia prisca viris est,
hoc stabant, hoc sunt imitandi; quos neque pulcher
Hermogenes umquam legit, neque simius iste
5. tribuens, payimg him fhis trib-
atte. — dederim : cf. I. 4. 39. —
quoque, belonging to the whole
clause. — cetera, the other qualities
that make a poet. — sic, om fhaz
primcip/e, by that rule.
' 6. Laberi, Decimus Laberius, a
IRoman knight of the end of the
Republic, who wrote mimes, far-
cical dramatic poems of the lowest
class, often obscene, and always rep-
resenting common realistic scenes
from low life. The argumentis that
if witty ridicule alone made poetry,
these productions must be counted
as such.
7. ergo : î. e. since the reductio
ad absurdumz above proves that wit
alone is not sufficient. — diducere
rictum, raise a /aug/. : lit. open
wide the jaws as in laughter.
8. hic, ìm-z/.is.
9. brevitate : i.e. the common
talk of the street is too wordy for
art. — currat, /?oZv om free/y. —
sententia, z/ae thought.
II. sermone, etc. : i.e. farcical
dialogue alone is not enough; there
must be a serious vein as well, to
give variety.
I 2. defendente, supporz: cf. tu-
eri, the more common expression. —
vicem, z/ae parz. — rhetoris atque
poetae, the serious style of the ora-
tor and poet. &
I 3. urbani, of z/ae zwiz. — par-
centis: ì.e. treating a subject light-
ly, not speaking with as much moral
fervor as the poet or orator.
I4. ridiculum : the style of the
urbanus just referred to. — acri:
the style of the orator and poet.
I 5. secat, decides (cuts knots),
cf. Æρ. I. I 6. 42.
16. illi: Aristophanes and the
like, the writers of the old comedy
(prisca). Cf. I. 4. I.
I7. stabant, kept their ground,
a word borrowed from the stage,
like ** run *° im English. — pulcher:
a term of reproach, indicating effem-
inacy.
18. Hermogenes, etc. : refer-
ring, no doubt, to the clique of
76 EHORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
nil praeter Calvum et doctus cantare Catullum.
* At magnum fecit, quod verbis Graeca Latinis 2O
miscuit.'
O seri studiorum ! quine putetis
difficile et mirum, Rhodio quod Pitholeonti
contigit ?
* At sermo lingua concinnus utraque
suavior, ut Chio nota si commixta Falerni est.'
Cum versus facias, te ipsum percontor, an et cum 25
dura tibi peragenda rei sit causa Petilli?
Horace's critics, who, he implies,
'are incapacitated for criticism in
this matter because they never read
Greek, and don't know what they
are talking about. — simius : per-
haps on account of his tricks which
he used to amuse society. Cf. I. 9.
24 and v. 8o. The reference is said
to be to Demetrius. See v. 79.
I9. Calvum, C. Licinius Calvus,
a contemporary of Cicero, and friend
of Catullus. The reproach here is
aimed, no doubt, at the prettiness of
their love songs. We can hardly tell
about Calvus, but Catullus was cer-
tainly superior to Horace in the
poetic gift.
2o. magnum fecit: in the gen-
eral admiration of Greek literature,
`no doubt there were men who actu-
ally thought the interlarding of
Greek words was a merit. Their
claim is introduced to be disallowed.
— Graeca : Lucilius uses whole
sentences of Greek.
2I. seri studiorum (cf. cerebri
felicem, I. 9. II), pedantic δ/ocÄ-
Àeads, a translation of όμιμαθεῖs,
late to learn, and so filled with
the zeal of a new convert, putting
in at all times what they have just
learned. Cf. Gell. XI. 7. — quine :
this difficult expressionis the despair
of grammarians. The -ne abso-
lutely requires a question either in
the clause itself or in the principal
clause (cf. Plaut. 7'ruc. II. 6. 53).
Βut no question including the
meaning of qui seems exactly right.
It might be taken in the sense of
“ How can you think,” etc., in
which case the -ne would only be
added to the interrogative as in
utrumne. Perhaps qui may be
indefinite, as in the Hercle qui,
and the like, of the comedy. In this
case it would meam, “ Can you have
any idea?” etc., and the expression
would be a popular one not appear-
ing elsewhere in literature.
22. Pitholeonti, an unknown
poetaster. Possibly Pitholaus. Cf.
Suet. %. C. 75.
3. at: introducing an argument
of his adversaries; but, you say. —.
lingua: abl. of means. — concin-
nus, meat?y foined.
24. Chio : the Greek wines were
sweeter and less harsh than the
ILatin, and hence an agreeable mix-
ture was made of the two. — nota:
the brama, put for the wine. The
opponent uses this practice as an
example to prove the advantage of
mixing the two languages.
25. cum, etc. : Horace meets the
argument by reducing it to an ab-
surdity, asking if it is only in poe-
try, or will it hold good in oratory
also. — te ipsum, etc. : implying
that they themselves could see the
folly of such a course in a plea in
COurt.
26. Peti11i: a famous law case
(see I. 4. 94) is used as a sample of
a I l. .
X. I9-37.]
HORATI SERMONES. 77
scilicet oblitus patriaeque patrisque Latini
cum Pedius causas exsudet Publicola atque
Corvinus, patriis intermiscere petita
verba foris malis, Canusini more bilinguis ? 3O.
atque ego cum Graecos facerem, natus mare citra,
versiculos, vetuit me tali voce Quirinus,
post mediam noctem visus, cum somnia vera :
* In silvam non ligna feras insanius, ac si
magnas Graecorum malis implere catervas.' 35.
Turgidus Alpinus iugulat dum Memnona, dumque
defingit Rheni luteum caput, haec ego ludo,
27. scilicet, etc.: ?.e. to be con-
sistent, of course, they must also
ask the great orator to use Greek
as well. — oblitus, etc.: that is,
forgetting that you are a Roman.
28. Pedius : Q. Pedius Publicola
was a brother of M. Valerius Mes-
sala Corvinus, but adopted into the
gens Pedia. These two are types
of great orators. — exsudet : a hu-
morous expression for ** work out”
their difficult cases for their ora-
tions. ' •
29. patriis (sc. verbis from ver-
ba below). — intermiscere : the
regular grammar would require eos
expressed, but it is readily supplied
from the mames which have just
occurred.
3o. foris : i.e. from Greece. —
Canusini: at Canusium Greek and
Oscan would both be spokem.
3I. atque ego, etc.: the answer
is supposed already to be given, and
the absurdity shown, whereupon
Horace makes the argument still
stronger by showing that it isn't
well for a Roman to write Greek
poetry at all. This he enforces by
a fable of his own case. It is prob-
ably true so far as the maim idea is
concerned.
32. tali, the words in vv. 34, 35.
33. cum, etc., an old superstition.
34. in silvam, etc., a common
proverb, like coals to Newcastle, and
Tλαῦκ' eis *A6fivas. The fable gives
him a transition to his own style
and his reason for adopting it.
36. turgidus: probably with a.
double meaning, as there is no rea-
son to doubt the assertion of the
scholiast that M. Furius Bibaculus,
is meant (cf. II. 5. 4 I). If he is,
he was no doubt called Alpinus in
mockery of his poem on the Alps,
(see above citation). — iugulat :
with a double meaning, of a poem
in which Memnon, son of Tithonus
and Aurora, was killed by Achilles.
The poem is said by a scholiast to
have been an Æthiopis.
37. defingit, /// uddles : i.e. by de-
scribing it badly, using no doubt the
epithet luteum. — caput: probably
the mouth, but it may mean the
source. The former seems more
likely on account of luteum. —
haec ego ludo, i.e. * I, having been
advised not to write Greek poetry,
and not wishing to imitate the
tasteless effusions of Alpinus in
epic poetry, content myself with
these trifles in a sportive strain, not
to be recited for a prize, nor to ap-
pear om the stage. Others can do
7S HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I.
quae neque in aede sonent certantia iudice Tarpa,
nec redeant iterum atque iterum spectanda theatris.
Arguta meretrice potes Davoque Chremeta 4O
eludente senem comis garrire libellos
unus vivorum, Fundani ; Pollio regum
facta canit pede ter percusso ; forte epos acer,
ut nemo, Varius ducit ; molle atque facetum
those things better.” He then pro-
ceeds to assign the mastery in the
«lifferent styles to others, — to Fun-
danius in comedy (cf. Sat. II. 8.
I9); to C. Asinius Pollio, famed as
a statesmam, orator, and historian
as well, in tragedy ; in epic poetry,
to Varius (cf. I. 5. 4o); in rural
scenes to Virgil, whose Æneid had
not yet been written. He has not
tried to rival these, but has chosen
a branch in which he could excel.
38. in aede, etc. : a free allusion
to recitation for prizes, though no
definite occasion is known. — Tar-
pa : Sp. Mæcius Tarpa was a friend
of Pompey, and chosen by him as a
literary critic to select the play for
his mew theatre. He probably con-
trived to hold the same position, as
a judge of literature under Augustus
(cf. A. A. 387), though the refer-
ence may be to any judge.
4o. arguta, etc.: the two meth-
ods of publication are referred to in
chiastic order: first, comedy and
tragedy for the theatre; second, epic
and bucolic poetry for recitation.
— meretrice : in the abl. absolute
with eludente, giving the subject
of the writing through the charac-
ters usually appearing in that form
of composition. — arguta, cum mi mg.
— meretrice, one of the most com-
mon characters in the comedy. —
Davo, a characteristic slave name.
See Ter. Amdrìa. — Chremeta, the
old man of the comedy. See Ter.
Ade///ii.
4 I. eludente : the tricks of the
slave, who assists his young master
in deceiving the father, form the
staple of the new comedy. The
meretrix also assisted in these.
4I. comis (with libellos), zwitty
amd e/egam?. — garrire, ra///e off.
The word is chosen on account of
the light character of the dialogue.
— libellos, î. e. Works, a cognate
acc. with garrire. «
42. Fundani : mentioned also
in II. 8. I 9, as belonging to the
Maecenas coterie, but none of his
works are known. — regum, ì.e.
chieftains like Agamemnon, etc., in
tragedy. See next note. •
43. pede ter percussa, i.e. in
the iambic trimeter, the staple verse
of tragedy. Though the verse has
six feet, it has only three marked
ictus. Cf. A. P. 252. — forte, pow-
erfu/, on account of the stirring
scenes depicted. — acer, vigorous, '
on account of the spirit which the
author must have.
44. Varius: cf. I. 5. 4o. — du-
cit : the figure is from spinning,
but zweavimg the zweò o/, etc., is per-
haps better in English. — ut nemo,
sc. alius. — molle : the gentleness
of bucolic poetry, as opposed to the
vigor of epic. — facetum, ì. e. e/e-
gam? amad' po/ished. Cf. Facetum
quoque non tantum circa ridicula
Opinor consistere. . . . Decoris hanc
magis et excultae cuiusdam elegan-
tiae appellationem puto. Quintil.
VI. 3. 2o.
X. 38—57.]
HORATI SERMONES.' 79
Vergilio adnuerunt gaudentes rure Camenae. 45
Hoc erat, experto frustra Varrone Atacino
atque quibusdam aliis, melius quod scribere possem,
inventore minor ; neque ego illi detrahere ausim
haerentem capiti cum multa laude coronam.
At dixi fluere hunc lutulentum, saepe ferentem 5o
plura quidem tollenda relinquendis.
tu nihil in magno doctus reprehendis Homero ?
Age, quaeso,
nil comis tragici mutat Lucilius Acci ?
non ridet versus Enni gravitate minores,
cum de se loquitur non ut maiore reprensis ? 55
Quid vetat et nosmet Lucili scripta legentis
quaerere, num illius, num rerum dura negarit
45. adnuerunt, /aave gramted, i.e.
given the power to write in that
IY12 IlI1€Γ.
46. hoc, i.e. satire. — erat: re-
ferring to the time when Horace
made his choice. — experto : ì.e.
Had tried it unsuccessfully, not as
those in the other branches in such
a way as to forbid competition. —
Varrone : P. Terentius Varro, called
Atacinus from the river Atax in
INarbonese Gaul, where he was born,
was a very industrious and copious
poet, who tried many styles of com-
position, but whose light was ob-
scured by the more brilliant men
who succeeded him. He was born
82 B.C.
47. quibusdam : such as M.
Terentius Varro, L. Abbucius, Ser-
vius Nicanor. — melius : i.e. than
they.
48. inventore minor, ì.e. though
???ferior to Lucilius. — neque ego,
etc.: the main point of the whole.
Horace was charged with setting
himself up as superior to Lucilius,
and criticising arrogantly the work
of his master. This he here ex-
pressly denies.
5o. at dixi, but 7 did say (I ad-
mit), proceeding to show that such
criticism is the natural thing in the
improvement of literature from age
to age, even in regard to so great
a genius as Homer. The passage
referred to is I. 4. II, and the figure
is that of a torrent. »
5 I. tollenda: the part to be re-
jected is evem more than that to be
retained.
52. doctus, /earnea' critîc, an
almost technical expression for a
professional man in any art.
53. So also Lucilius improves om
Accius, though in the line oftragedy.
— comis, ge/ziaz a?2a, zgzzzy.
54. gravitate minores, imferior
zmz digmizy, to the requirements of
the subject.
55. At the same time Lucilius
does not claim that he is superior
to these earlier writers, though he
criticises them. -
56. Therefore there is no objec-
tion to Horace's following Lucilius'
example, and criticising him in his
turn.
57. illius, his ozvm, i.e. the char-
actcr of the poet's genius, — re-
80 • HORATI SERMONES,
[LIB. I.
versiculos natura magis factos et euntis
mollius, ac si quis, pedibus quid claudere senis,
hoc tantum contentus, amet scripsisse ducentos 6o
ante cibum versus, totidem cenatus ; Etrusci
quale fuit Cassi rapido ferventius amni
ingenium, capsis quem fama est esse librisque
ambustum propriis.
Fuerit Lucilius, inquam,
comis et urbanus, fuerit limatior idem 65
quam rudis et Graecis intacti carminis auctor,
quamque poetarum seniorum turba ; sed ille,
si foret hoc nostrum fato dilatus in aevum,
detereret sibi multa, recideret omne quod ultra
rum : the character of his subjects.
— dura, rough and stiff, not flexible
so as to yield to the elegances of
poetry.
58. versiculos, etc.: i.e. smooth
amd flowing, and carefully fimished
VerSe.
59. ac, etc.: than would natu-
rally be the case with one that wrote
as he did, carelessly and copiously,
in the mammer of his age. — pedi-
bus senis, î. e. hexameters. — clau-
dere, compose, an almost technical
expression for writingpoetry, round-
ing off the lines.
6o. hoc : ì.e. merely making
verse without regard to polish.
6I. Etrusci: so called, probably,
to distinguish him from the Cassius
in Æ?. I. 4. 3.
62. Cassi, an unknown poet. —
ferventius, rolling on more Swiftly.
63. capsis, etc. : î. e. he wrote
enough to make his own funeral
pile of his manuscripts and their
cases. — capsis: these were cases
for rolls in which they stood up on
end.
64. fuerit: a concession, to which
is opposed the sentence with sed
ille, v. 67.
65. 1imatior, more po/ished. —
idem, at t/ie sa//ze zi/ze, a still
greater concession.
66. quam, etc.: i.e. tham the in-
ventor of this kind of composition
could be expected to be. — rudis,
zunfriea (with carminis). Satire
was probably not in fact a really
mew form of literary art, but the
Greeks had not brought it to per-
fection as they had other forms, and
hence Lucilius had strictly no one to
imitate ; therefore the first attempts
must necessarily be rough. — in-
tacti: the Romans of Horace's
time considered satire as entirely of
Romam origin, which in some sense
it was. Cf. Quintil. X. I. 93.
67. ille: emphatic; evem /ie would
write with much more care and pains
if he were alive now; an argument,
of course, in favor of Horace's criti-
cism, as well as for his style.
68. dilatus: amother reading,
dilapsus, gives no sense, and de-
1apsus seems forced.
69. detereret, smoot/, azway ; re-
ferring to the use of the file, cf.
1irmatior.— recideret, prume avay;
not merely polishing, as in detere-
ret, but suppressing.— ultra perfec-
tum traheretur: ì.e. Overdone, be-
yond the goldem meam of perfection.
x. 58—81.]
HORATI SERMONES. 81
perfectum traheretur, et in versu faciendo 7o
saepe caput scaberet, vivos et roderet unguis.
Saepe stilum vertas, iterum quae digna legi sint
scripturus, neque te ut miretur turba labores,
contentus paucis lectoribus.
An tua demens
vilibus in ludis dictari carmina malis ? 75
non ego; nam satis est equitem mihi plaudere, ut audax,
contemptis aliis, explosa Arbuscula dixit.
Men' moveat cimex Pantilius, aut cruciet quod
vellicet absentem Demetrius, aut quod ineptus
Fannius Hermogenis laedat conviva Tigelli ? 8o
Plotius et Varius, Maecenas Vergiliusque,
7 I. saepe, etc.: humorous ex-
pressions indicating greater pains
in writing, as opposed to the care-
less style of Lucilius. This thought
leads Horace to descant on the
necessity of erasing and doing Over
again one's first effort.
72. stilum vertas : the ancient
sti/us, for writing on wax, was made
with a sharp point at one end, and
a flat piece at the other to smooth
down (inducere) the wax and oblit-
erate the previous writing.
73. scripturus, £f you meam zo
zvrite. — 1abores, troub/e yourself
to /iave, £ry to have.
74. paucis : only the better edu-
cated few could appreciate perfect
work ; it would be too refined to
please the people, for whom a dif-
ferent style would be necessary. —
an : a reduczio ad abs?z7rdum, as
often with an.
75. vilibus : cf. I. 6. 72. — dic-
tari: i.e. to be used as exercises in
teaching the ignorant to write. It :
is probable, however, that it was
just this use of Horace's works and
others that has, by the multipli-
cation of copies, preserved them to
llS. -
76. equitem, for the higher
classes. — audax, tumaaaumtea, not
abashed by the displeasure of the
crowd.
77. explosa, hisSed off the stage,
whence comes our expression, an
** exploded theory,” though we have
a different conception of it now. —
Arbuscula, a famous actress in the
mimes, the only class of plays in
which women appeared. She is
also mentioned by Cic. ad Att. VI.
I 5. Her acting was probably too
tame and decent for the coarse
Romans of the lower class.`
78. The distinction between the
two kinds of readers gives him an
opportunity to hold up to scorn the
opposing clique, by putting them
among the populace, and to claim for
himself the approval of the more re-
fined.— cimex: aswe might say rep-
ti/e. — Pantilius, an unknown poet.
79. Demetrius, also unknown,
but very likely the simius referred
to in v. I8.
8o. Fannius, a third ofthe clique,
the garrulous coxcomb mentioned
in I. 4. 2I. — Hermogenis : cf. I.
4. 72, 9. 25, 3. I 29 — conviva:
probably to indicate that they are
both parasites, worthless fellows
who made a living by their wits.
81. Plotius : see I. 5. 4o. — Va-
rius : see v. 44.
82 EHORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. I. X. 82—92.
Valgius, et probet haec Octavius, optimus atque
Fuscus, et haec utinam Viscorum laudet uterque !
Ambitione relegata te dicere possum,
Pollio, te, Messalla, tuo cum fratre, simulque 85
vos, Bibule et Servi, simul his te, candide Furni,
compluris alios, doctos ego quos et amicos
prudens praetereo ; quibus haec, sunt qualiacumque,
arridere velim, doliturus si placeant spe
deterius nostra.
Demetri, teque, Tigelli, 9O
discipularum inter iubeo plorare cathedras.
I, puer, atque meo citus haec subscribe libello.
82. Valgius, C. Valgius Rufus,
an elegiac and epigrammatic poet, a
friend of Horace, to whom Od. II.
9 is addressed. His writings are
now lost. — Octavius, a poet and
historian. Virgil(?) speaks of him,
Cata/ecta XIV., —
“ Scripta quidem tua nos multum mira-
bimur et te s.
Raptum et Romanam flebimus historiam.”
83. Fuscus : see I. 9. 6I, Od. I.
22, /7). I. IO. He was probably
only a literary connoisseur, as no
works of his are known to us. —
Viscorum, one of them is men-
tioned in I. 9. 22, but they are
Otherwise unknown.
84. ambitione : as the others
were of high ramk in prominent
positions, he might be accused of am-
bitious designs in mentioning them ;
therefore he declares that he has no
such designs, and implies that their
prominence is so great that he can
mention them without suspicion.
85. Pollio : see v. 42. — Mes-
salla: see v. 29. — fratre, Pedius.
86. Bibule, Servi, Furni: oth-
erwise unknown. — his : dative fol-
lowing simul by an imitation of
the Greek άμα and an extension of
words of nearness and likeness.
87. doctos, commoîssetz7rs ; cf. v.
52 and I. 9. 7.
88. prudens, purposely ; cf. im-
prudens. — haec, the Satires, to
which this one is a kind of e/zvoi. —
qualiacumque, suc/, as t/iey are.
89. arridere, give p/easure, a
meaning transferred from its proper
meaning of smile upon. Cf. Cic. ad'
Att. XIII. 2 I. 3. — doliturus : a fa-
vorite construction with Horace, but
better rendered in English by ama'
/ s/.vw?a', ùtc.
9o. deterius, being applied to a
good thing, is equivalent to minus,
and is very likely colloquial.
9I. discipularum : by this word
Horace scoffs at these poets as
effeminate women's darlings. — iu-
beo: the regular word, like our òìa',
here with a kind of double meaning.
— plorare, zv/iäme, referring to the
love-sick songs that these men sang
(and perhaps taught also), to the de-
light of women, and also to the Greek
oiu6%eiv (the opposite of xatpeiv).
The whole only amounts to, ** I
leave you to whine among your pet-
ticoated pupils, bad luck to you.”
92. puer: an amanuensis. — ci-
tus : adjective for adverb ; ** be
quick and go.” — libello : the first
book of Satires.
LIB. II. I. I—5.]
HORATI SERMONES. 83
LIBER SECUNDUS.
Horaz. Sunt quibus in satura videor nimis acer et ultra
legem tendere opus; sine nervis altera, quicquid
composui, pars esse putat, similisque meorum
mille die versus deduci posse.
7rebat. Quiescas.
quid faciam praescribe.
faciam, inquis,
EOOK II.
SATIRE I. There is mo distinct
evidence that the two books of
Satires were published separately
so as to need an introduction to
each, yet this Satire serves as a sort
of introduction to the second book,
as Satire I. I. is an introduction to
the whole. We have in this a de-
fence of the poet's treatment of sat-
ire, in answer to the many charges
which had been made by his ene-
mies and critics, upon the reading
of the various pieces in a rather
large circle of friends. That the
Satires must have been given to the
world separately in this quasi-public
way appears from I. 2. 27 and I. 4.
92. The conception of the piece
is perfectly natural, and in the
highest degree witty and humorous.
Horace is supposed to take advice
of an old lawyer-as to his proper
course, in view of the contradictory
criticisms made upon his work ;
and in the conversation which en-
sues he treats the subject from all
sides, while at the same time he
keeps the person of the lawyer dis-
tinct from his own in a perfectly
dramatic form. As a piece of com-
position it could hardly be excelled.
Trebati,
Ho7ra/. Ne
5
I. satura: here, for the first time
in literature, this word seems to be
used in the sense to which it has
later been confined. — videor : the
mood of the verb seems to imply
that he has definite persons in mind,
but it is always the privilege of a
poet to speak as if he had, whether
he has or not (cf. Od. I. I. 3). —
acer: i.e. in his criticism or invec-
tive. -
2. legem, i.e. the proper limits.
of the style of composition (cf. A.
A. I 35). — tendere, force, a figure
taken from the bow. — sine nervis,
just the opposite fault to the first,
zwithout force, being mere inartistic
prose.
4. deduci, spzzzz off; keeping the
same figure. — Trebati, C. Treba-
tius Testa, a juriscomsult, or con-
sulting lawyer, in his youth a friend
of Cicero; cf. Cic. ad Fam. VII. 6
and 22. The shortness and authori-
tative mamner of his answers (cf.
quiescas, v. 5, and aio, v. 6) indi-
cate an old and experienced lawyer,
though at that time he could not
have been much above fifty, while
Horace was about thirty.
5. praescribe : probably the
technical term for giving directions.
84 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
omnino versus ?
11O 11
optimum erat ; verum nequeo dormire.
uncti
7Trebaz. Aio.
A7o/az. Peream male, si
77'eóaz. Ter
transnanto Tiberim, somno quibus est opus alto,
irriguumque mero sub noctem corpus habento.
Aut, si tantus amor scribendi te rapit, aude io
Caesaris invicti res dicere, multa laborum
praemia laturus.
A7orat. Cupidum, pater optime, vires
deficiunt ; neque enim quivis horrentia pilis
agmina nec fracta pereuntis cuspide Gallos
which must be followed, as being in
accordance with the# ;
6. aio, that's zw/ia?*7 say. — pere-
am male, comfouma me ; cf. I. 9. 47.
7. erat, zwoula' be ; instead of the
subjunctive, on account of the mean-
ing of the phrase (** necessity, pro-
priety,” etc.). The expression is
the apodosis contrary to fact of an
omitted protasis, si ita facerem, or
the like ; but the whole conditional
sentence, including both protasis
and apodosis, is the protasis of
peream male in the form where
no opinion is expressed (cf. I. 9.
38 and 47). — dormire : this word
at once indicates that it is Horace's
nature to write so long as he is
awake, thus making it an impera-
tive necessity, and it also gives Hor-
ace a chance to allude to two of
the foibles of Trebatius, swimming
and wine. — ter, etc. : Trebatius,
taking note of only the final expres-
sion, aS if he did not know what it
really meant, gives a prescription
in the brief professional manner,
for insomnia. There is an old super-
stition about this number. — uncti:
the ancients in all their athletic exer-
cises anointed themselves with oil,
partly to render the skin soft, and
partly to prevent the effect of cold.
8. transnanto : this form of the
imperative is in the formal archaic
style of laws and prescriptions.
9. irriguum : î. e. drink freely
before going to bed.
IO. rapit: î. e. with such force as
to be irresistible. — aude : the dar-
ing would consist in trying so lofty
a theme.
I I. Caesaris, i.e. Augustus,
though he did not receive this
appellation till B.C. 27, a few years
later. — res, ì.e. his warlike exploits,
in an epic.
I 2. laturus : we must break this
into another sentence in English,
as we are often obliged to do with
this favorite construction of Horace.
— cupidum : this also should be
made a separate clause. — pater,
z/eneraóle sir, a common form of
address in Latin to older persons.
I 3. deficiunt: ì.e. his powers are
inadequate to the demands of epic
poetry, a deficiency to which he
often alludes (Od. I. 6. 9, etc.), but
at the same time he contrives to
give an indirect hint at what he
would say if he tried such themes. —
horrentia, etc.: descriptions which
one must attempt who essays this
form. — pilis : ?.e. the Roman army.
I4. fracta cuspide : sometimes
taken as referring to the device by
which the point of a spear was so
I. 6-25.]
HORATI SERMONES. 85
aut labentis equo describat volnera Parthi. I5
7rebat. Attamen et iustum poteras et scribere fortem,
Scipiadam ut sapiens Lucilius. Horaz. Haud mihi deero,
cum res ipsa feret.
Nisi dextro tempore, Flacci
verba per attentam non ibunt Caesaris aurem,
cui male si palpere, recalcitrat undique tutus. 2O
7rebat. Quanto rectius hoc, quam tristi laedere versu
Pantolabum scurram Nomentanumque nepotem,
cum sibi quisque timet, quamquam est intactus, et odit !
Horaz. Quid faciam ?
Saltat Milonius, ut semel icto
accessit fervor capiti numerusque lucernis ; 25
arranged as to break or bend and
become useless after being thrown.
As this seems rather far-fetched, we
may take it as representing the help-
less condition of the enemy with
their spears broken in the contest.
— Gallos : Augustus conducted
and sent several expeditions against
the Gauls.
I 5. equo: the strength of the
Parthians was in cavalry. — Parthi:
these were at that time the most
formidable enemies of the Romans,
but what particular expedition is
referred to is uncertain.
I6. iustum, etc.: î. e. you might
at least celebrate the c?z/ic virtues of
Augustus. — poteras: a conclusion
of a suppressed condition contrary
to fact ; something like * if you
chose ” ; cf. optimum erat, v. 7. —
fortem, emergezic, as a ruler.
I7. Scipiadam, the younger
Africanus ; cf. v. 72 ez seq. The
patronymicis chosen because Scip-
ionem ( v . . ) could not be
used in this verse. The form of the
accusative is the more strictly Latin
form, and agrees with the Doric
dialect. — sapiens: ì.e. he was wise
enough to choose civil subjects for
his praise of Scipio, and avoid war-
like themes.
I8. res ipsa feret: ì.e. when the
proper case shall arise. — Flacci:
z.e. a humble man like me, as com-
pared with the great Cæsar.
I9. ibunt per, fima access zo.
2O. palpere : the figure is of a
horse ; but, as often happens, the
person and the figure are identified.
In English the expression must be
softened by saying ** who is like a
horse, if you stroke him the wrong
way,” etc. — tutus, himself safe
from attacâ.
2 I. quanto, etc. : the reply of
Trebatius. — tristi, sez/ere or aózz-
sive.
22. Pantolabum, etc.: cf. I. 8. I I.
— Nomentanum : mentioned in I.
I. Io2, and elsewhere.
23. cum sibi, etc.: â.e. in this
case the poet makes enemies of
everybody, which is worse than run-
ning the risk of offending Cæsar.
24. quid faciam : the poet's an-
swer: ** Every mam has his special
weakness or hobby, and mine is like
Lucilius', to write satire.” — saltat
Milonius: this unknown persom
had the habit of dancing at ban-
quets, which among the Romans
was considered disreputable (cf.
Cic. pro A/ur. VI. I3). — icto, etc.,
z/ie /ieaz has /?owm zo his Âead fi//ed
zwith the fumes of the zwine.
25. numerus accessit: the well-
86 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
Castor gaudet equis, Ovo prognatus eodem
pugnis ; quot capitum vivunt, totidem studiorum
milia: me pedibus delectat claudere verba
Lucili ritu, nostrum melioris utroque.
Ille velut fidis arcana sodalibus olim 3O
credebat libris, neque, si male cesserat, usquam
decurrens alio, neque si bene ; quo fit ut omnis
votiva pateat veluti descripta tabella
vita senis.
Sequor hunc, Lucanus an Apulus anceps :
nam Venusinus arat finem sub utrumque colonus, 35
missus ad hoc, pulsis, vetus est ut fama, Sabellis,
quo ne per vacuum Romano incurreret hostis,
sive quod Apula gens seu quod Lucania bellum
incuteret violenta.
known phenomenon ofseeing double
in intoxication.
26. Castor, etc.: even two twin
brothers have different tastes, as in
the case of the Dioscuri.
27. pugnis : i.e. as a boxer. —
capitum : often used for persons. —
totidem, etc., cf. quot homines tot
sententiae. Ter. Phorm. II. 4. I4.
28. pedibus, etc. : a kind oflight,
depreciating way of speaking of his
poetry.
29. nostrum, etc.: and so a safe
example to follow.
3o. arcana, λâs secreas (acts and
thoughts), implying that he had
no care to suppress anything from
fear.
31. si male cesserat (impers.),
£f he had fared il/ : i.e. he trusted
to his books alike his good and evil
fortune.
33. votiva: the ancients were
accustomed to show their gratitude
for escapes from peril by painting
the scene on a tablet, usually in the
most realistic manner, and hanging
up the tablet in the temple of some
divinity. Cf. Od. I. 5. 13. The same
Sed hic stilus haud petet ultro
thank-offering is now paid to the
saints.
34. senis, z/ie o/a, poet (not of
age, but of antiquity). — Lucanus
an Apulus: the mention of the
nation seems to indicate that Hor-
ace comes of a warlike race, and so
may be expected to be a fighting
character, at least in poetry. — an-
ceps: probably nom. masc., agree-
ing with the subject of sequor.
35. Venusinus, Venusia, the
poet's birthplace, was on the boun-
dary-line of the two races.
36. missus, etc.: this descrip-
tion indicates the warlike character
of the two races. — Sabellis, i.e. the
Samnites. The colony was planted
B.C. 29 I, in the Third Samnite War.
37. quo ne : equivalent to ut ne.
— vacuum, am umdefended poimt
in the line of defences.
39. incuteret: the subjunctive
indicates, as usual, that it was the
notion of some one else, here of the
Romans. — sed : i.e. though I come
of this warlike race, my weapon
shall never be drawn except im de-
fence. — ultro, tumprovo/éed, prop-
I. 26—57.]
IIORATI SERMONES. S7
quemquam animantem, et me veluti custodiet ensis 4o
vagina tectus; quem cur destringere coner,
tutus ab infestis latronibus ? O pater et rex
Iuppiter, ut pereat positum robigine telum,
nec quisquam noceat cupido mihi pacis !
At ille
qui me commorit (* melius non tangere !' clamo), 45
flebit et insignis tota cantabitur urbe.
Cervius iratus leges minitatur et urnam,
Canidia Albuci quibus est inimica venenum,
grande malum Turius, si quid se iudice certes.
Ut quo quisque valet suspectos terreat, utque 5o
imperet hoc natura potens, sic collige mecum :
dente lupus, cornu taurus petit : unde nisi intus
monstratum ?
Scaevae vivacem crede nepoti
matrem ; nil faciet sceleris pia dextera : mirum,
ut neque calce lupus quemquam neque dente petit bos: 55
sed mala tollet anum vitiato melle cicuta.
Ne longum faciam : seu me tranquilla senectus
erly beyoma, what is called for by
the occasion.
4o. animantem, livimag so/u/.
4I. quem cur, and zw/.y . . . it ?
43. ut : used like utinam. —
positum, /aid azway.
45. commorit, stirs 7/ze zup, or
7rozzses mze. — melius non tangere :
a common expression, öetter Zez me
όe. Inserted as a parenthesis, it
gives a more popular form to the
description.
46. flebit, s/a// smarz for iz. —
cantabitur, s/ia// όecome a by-
' zwora'.
47. Cervius, etc. : Horace illus-
trates his use of satire as a weapon
of defence, by a list of apparent
examples, each of which, however,
is a stinging characterization of
Some notable rascal. — leges : i.e.
he is an informer, and uses this
function as his weapon against his
€n€ÌmIeS.
48. Albuci, probably a seller of
drugs.
49. Turius, a corrupt juror who
will punish his enemy by deciding
a case against him.
5o. ut: interrogative. — quo, etc.,
zviz/, //ae mosz powemyu? zweapoma
zv/.ic/. /ie has.
5 I. natura, a matura? ìnstìnct.-
sic, i.e. by the following reasoning.
52. intus monstratum, êy an
imzvara momitiom, strictly nisi hoc
intus monstratum est.
53. vivacem : i.e. too long-lived
for him.
54. nil... dextera: ?.e. no act of
violence, as that would be contrary
to his filial (pia) nature (of course
ironical).
57. longum, zoo /ong a story.
88
[LIB. II.
HORATI SERMONES.
M.
exspectat seu Mors atris circumvolat alis,
dives, inops, Romae, seu fors ita iusserit, exul,
quisquis erit vitae, scribam, color. 77rebat. O puer, ut
S1S
6o
vitalis metuo, et maiorum ne quis amicus
frigore te feriat.
//oraz. Quid, cum est Lucilius ausus
primus in hunc operis componere carmina morem,
detrahere et pellem, nitidus qua quisque per ora
cederet, introrsum turpis, num Laelius aut qui
65
duxit ab oppressa meritum Carthagine nomen,
ingenio offensi, aut laeso doluere Metello
famosisque Lupo cooperto versibus ?
Atqui
primores populi arripuit populumque tributim,
scilicet uni aequus virtuti atque eius amicis.
7o
Quin ubi se a volgo et scaena in secreta remorant
virtus Scipiadae et mitis sapientia Laeli,
59. exul: opposed to Romae,
from which he mnight be banished
om account of his satire.
6o. color: ?.e. as bright or dark
with good or bad fortune.
6 I. vitalis, lomg-/ivea' (on account
\ of the danger in such a course). — '
Ymaiorum, partitive genitive with
amicus.
62. frigore, zwöz/, a cÃâ?? (by neg-
lect).
64. pellem : probably a remote
allusion to the fable of the ass in
the lion's skim. Cf. Æρ. I. 16. 45. —
nitidus, decÂed, with a fair outside.
65. turpis, foul, not precisely in
the full figurative use, but with a
closer application of the figurevthan
in English. — Laelius, etc.: in
allusion to amicus, v. 6I. — qui,
etc., Scipio.
67. Metello, Q. Cæcilius Metel-
1us Macedonicus, consul B.C. I43, a!
violent political opponent of Scipio,
and hence the object of the satire
of Lucilius.
68. Lupo, L. Cornelius Lentulus
Lupus, consul B.C. I 56, another
prominent person satirized by Lucil-
ius. The whole idea is, ** if Lucil-
ius' powerful friends were not alien-
ated by his attacks on the vicious,
why should Horace's be?” — fa-
mosis, abusive, that produce ill
fame. — atqui, and yet ; ?.e. though
they were not offended, yet they
had as much reason to be, as Hor-
ace could give his friends.
69. tributim, ???d?scrám ámzaze/y,
lit. a whole tribe at a time.
7o. scilicet, evidemt/y ; ì.e. his
conduct shows that he spared only
virtue.
7 I. quin, zw/y / ?.e. instead of
being offended, the friends were
only more intimate with him. —
scaena, the stage, ?.e. public life,
where they were set up to the public
gaze. — in secreta, ìmto re£rement.
72. virtus, etc.: an old Homeric
usage (cf. 3£m *HpaK\m£m) for the
èraz/e Scìpìo.
I. 58—86.]
HORATI SERMONES. 89
nugari cum illo et discincti ludere, donec
decoqueretur holus, soliti.
Quicquid sum ego, quamvis
infra Lucili censum ingeniumque, tamen me 75
cum magnis vixisse invita fatebitur usque
invidia, et, fragili quaerens illidere dentem,
offendet solido, — nisi quid tu, docte Trebati,
dissentis. 77rebat. Equidem nihil hinc diffindere possum.
Sed tamen ut monitus caveas, ne forte negoti 8o
incutiat tibi quid sanctarum inscitia legum :
si mala condiderit in quem quis carmina, ius est
iudiciumque. Horaz. Esto, si quis mala; sed bona si quis
iudice condiderit laudatus Caesare ? si quis
opprobriis dignum latraverit, integer ipse ? 85
Trebat. Solventur risu tabulae, tu missus abibis.
73. discincti: cf. ** in dressing-
gown and slippers.” — donec, etc.:
z.e. before dinner, while waiting for
their simple country repast.
74. quicquid, etc., suc/ as /am ;
i.e. though of humble station and
abilities.
75. censum, szazzo/z, as indicated
by the census, according to which
Lucilius was of Equestrian rank.
77. fragili, etc.: probably alluding
to the fable of the Viper and the
Eile.
78. nisi quid, etc.: i.e. ** all this
I submit with due deference to your
learned opinion.”
79. equidem, /, /?//z szure. —
nihil hinc diffindere, taÂe mo ex-
ception to ?his, lit. make no distinc-
tion, as the arguments in law con-
sist in distinguishing the particular
case from a general principle laid
down.
8o. ut, etc.: after a moneo, or
the like, implied in the preceding.
— negoti, ?rouble, as by a prosecu-
tion.
8I. incutiat, sprìmg zupom you, or
catc/. 3/ou im, with an idea of unex-
pectedness or surprise. — sancta-
rum, sacred, as sanctioned by an-
tiquity and the divine character of
the state.
82. si mala, etc. : a continuation
of the same idea, quoting the law
more exactly. — mala: a technical
expression in the law, meaning abu-
sázwe, which Horace, however, takes
in the ordinary sense of bad artisti-
cally. — ius, /aZv, i.e. a right of
action.
83. iudicium, a remedy, the pro-
cess for enforcing the rights Of the
person aggrieved. — esto, o/., J/es,
that's true.
84. Caesare (abl. abs. with iu-
dice) : i.e. approved even by the
supreme source of justice.
85. latraverit, assail, as the fig-
ure is too strong for English ears.
86. solventur tabulae, the in-
diczmtemt zwi// be quashed. — mis-
sus, free (discharged).
90 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
Quae virtus et quanta, boni, sit vivere parvo
(nec meus hic sermo est, sed quae praecepit Ofellus
rusticus, abnormis sapiens, crassaque Minerva),
discite, non inter lances mensasque nitentis,
cum stupet insanis acies fulgoribus et cum 5
acclinis falsis animus meliora recusat,
verum hic impransi mecum disquirite:
Male verum examinat omnis
Leporem sectatus equove
Dicam, si potero.
corruptus iudex.
* Cur hoc ? '
lassus ab indomito, vel, si Romana fatigat IO
militia adsuetum graecari, seu pila velox,
molliter austerum studio fallente laborem,
seu te discus agit, pete cedentem aera disco ;
SATIRE 2. This Satire is directed
against luxurious living. The dis-
course is put into the mouth of a
farmer, one of Horace's neighbors,
named Ofellus.
I. quae, i.e. in its nature. —
quanta, i.e. in degree.
3. abnormis, outside the schools,
according to no particular pattern
or sect. — sapiens: in its technical
sense. — crassa Minerva, p/aim
/.omesßum zwit, opposed to subtilis.
The figure is derived from spinning,
of which Minerva was patroness.
4. non inter, etc. : if one wants
to study the subject of abstemious-
ness, a richly furnished table is not
the best place for it.
5. stupet, is dazed. — insanis,
senseless.
7. hic, right here, i.e. without the
disturbing influences mentioned. —
impransi, om am emp£y stomach. —
cur hoc : a question of the hearer,
which is answered in the next line.
9. corruptus: the mind of a
man at a feast is compared to a
judge who has been bribed. — 1epo-
rem, etc. : to have an unbiassed
mind one must be in the normal
state of hunger, which is produced
by exercise.
Io. Romana: these rude sports
are called Roman, as opposed to
the more artistic athletic exercise
of the Greeks. •
I I. militia: riding and hunting
approach near to the exercises in
military life.
I 2. austerum : the dry toil is
relieved by the interest (studio) of
the game. ■
I 3. discus: the quoit was a fav-
orite means of exercise with the
ancients, not thrown at a mark, as
with us, but for long distances, like
throwing the hammer or putting
the stone. — agit, attracts, lit. spurs
on. — pete : this parenthesis is
strictly independent of the main
construction, which is si... fatigat,
etc., sperne, but the added clause,
seu discus agit, suggests to the
poet the apodosis, pete cedentem
II. I-29.]
HORATI SERMONES. 91
cum labor extuderit fastidia, siccus, inanis
sperne cibum vilem ; nisi Hymettia mella Falerno I5
ne biberis diluta.
Foris est promus, et atrum
defendens piscis hiemat mare : cum sale panis
latrantem stomachum bene leniet.
Non in caro nidore voluptas
qui partum ?
Unde putas aut
summa, sed in te ipso est. \ Tu pulmentaria quaere 2o
sudando ; pinguem vitiis albumque neque Ostrea
nec scarus aut poterit peregrina iuvare lagois.
Vix tamen eripiam, posito pavone, velis quin
hoc potius quam gallina tergere palatum,
corruptus vanis rerum, quia veneat auro 25
rara avis, et picta pandat spectacula cauda ;
tamquam ad rem attineat quicquam. Num vesceris ista
quam laudas pluma ?
Cocto num adest honor idem ?
carne tamen quamvis distat nihil, hanc magis illa
aera disco, /.ur? the discus through
z/ie 3/ie/dimg air.
I4. cum labor, ἐλem2 zwheme, etc.
— extuderit, has £mocked out of
3/ozz.
I 5. sperne, i.e. if you can.
I6. foris est promus : a sup-
posed extreme case, where the stew-
'ard is out, so that no dainties can
„ be got from the storeroom, and
there is no fish to be had; in that
case you will find even the simplest
food grateful.
18. 1atrantem, etc., the crazwings
o/, etc. — unde . . . aut qui, etc.,
zw/iemce ap2d. /.ozey does z/;zs compae ? 2.e.
that you find this food grateful. The
answer is in the next sentence.
2o. tu : repeating the emphasis
in te ipso. — pulmentaria: prob-
ably an allusion to the story of Soc-
rates, who, upon being discovered
walking abroad before daylight,
said, όιμον συνάγω. The same idea
is in the proverb, fames est optimum
condimentu///.
2 I. vitiis, excesses.
22. iuvare, give p/easure.
23. tamen : ì.e. though the real
pleasure depends upon the appetite
and not the food, yet the epicure is
beguiled by the empty show of the
viand, even where there is no differ-
ence in taste.
24. tergere, ?ic/%/e.
25. vanis rerum : a Greek con-
struction for vanis rebus.
28. cocto (sc. pavoni), etc.: and
furthermore, though the peacock is
served with its plumage, the plu-
mage loses much of its beauty when '
thus served.
29. carne, etc.: this passage has
been a crux grammaticorum for
more than a thousand years. The
idea is obvious, but the construction
difficult. If we take the reading in
the text, the only difficulty is the
position of esto after the infinitive
clause. Otherwise the construction
is precisely like esto iam haec
aeterno manere, Lucr, II. 907, and
92 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
imparibus formis deceptum te petere
|
i}
esto,. 3O
unde datum sentis, lupus hic Tiberinus an alto
captus hiet ?
ostia sub Tusci?
Pontisne inter iactatus an amnis
Laudas, insane, trilibrem
mullum, in singula quem minuas pulmenta necesse est.
Ducit te species, video: quo pertinet ergo 35
proceros odisse lupos ?
Quia scilicet illis
maiorem natura modum dedit, his breve pondus.
Ieiunus raro stomachus volgaria temnit.
* Porrectum magno magnum spectare catino
vellem,' ait Harpyiis gula digna rapacibus.
At vos 4o
praesentes Austri, coquite horum obsonia! Quamquam
putet aper rhombusque recens, mala copia quando
fg •
Æρ. I. ££; The sense then is :
“ Allowing that you are deceived
by appearances, so that you prefer
(magis petere) this (bird or flesh)
rather than the other (the fowl),
yet how in the world can you tell
the difference in the case of the
1upus ?” If we read hac magis
illa... te patet ; esto, we must take
illa as nominative (with caro un-
derstood), and hac agreeing with
carne; and take distat with magis
in the sense of the Greek διαφέρω,
be superior, * Though that flesh is
no whit superior to this, yet 'it is
plain you are taken in by the differ-
ence of appearance,” etc.
3 I. unde datum sentis, zw/îemce
zs zz givemz you zo zel? (by the taste),
?.e. how can you possibly tell where
the fish is caught — a thing which
epicures make a great point `of—
whether in the Tiber or in the sea
outside? — lupus: probably either
bass or pike.
32. hiet: change the construc-
tion in English ; zwhether z/ae /upus
τυλῖc/. yazwms om the platter zwas
caught, etc.
33. trilibrem : these are points
on which the epicures lay great
stress, though they are really of no
account, as the poet shows.
35. quo pertinet ergo, zwhaz
poim/ is there t/iem ìm, etc. : ì.e. if
you like a big mullet, why despise
a great lupus? The answer is, that
the epicure demands something
strange and unnatural.
36. illis: the lupus, as being more
distant from the mind ofthe speaker.
38. raro : take with ieiunus.
39. porrectum, etc.: the idea
suddenly changes, and a remark is
interposed from a glutton, who cares
for quantity rather than quality ;
“I wish I could see a big one,
etc.,” as if he said, ** you can't have
them too big for me.” Thereupon
the poet bursts out into an indignant
exclamation directed both at the
gourmez and the gourmzama, calling
on the hot south wind to come and
spoil their dainties for them.
4 I. quamquam : corrective ;
though it is of no use to wish that,
for the food, however fresh, is as
good as spoiled when there is no
appetite and the stomach craves
sharp stimulants.
II. 30-58.]
HORATI SERyMONES. «» 93
aegrum sollicitat stomachum, cum rapula plenus
atque acidas mavolt inulas.
Necdum omnis abacta
pauperies epulis regum ; nam vilibus ovis 45
nigrisque est oleis hodie locus.
Haud ita pridem
Galloni praeconis erat acipensere mensa
infamis.
Quid ? tunc rhombos minus aequor alebat?
Tutus erat rhombus, tutoque ciconia nido,
donec vos auctor docuit praetorius.
Ergo 5o.
si quis nunc mergos suavis edixerit assos,
parebit pravi docilis Romana iuventus.
Sordidus a tenui victu distabit, Ofello
iudice ; nam frustra vitium vitaveris illud,
si te alio pravum detorseris.
Avidienus, 55
cui Canis ex vero ductum cognomen adhaeret,
quinquennis oleas est et silvestria corna,
ac nisi mutatum parcit defundere vinum, et
44. necdum, etc.: the mention
of the simple appetizers leads him
to say tfiäTthere-àré still simple
viands served, implying that it might
be so throughout, only it is a matter
of fashion, and the dainties vary
from time to time from mere ca-
price.
45. regum, prò mces, i.e. the rich.
— ovis : cf. I. 3. 6.
46. nigris oleis : olives preserved
after they are ripe, as they are still
treated in Italy.
47. Galloni, a person satirized
by Lucilius on account of his lux-
ury, and especially on account of
his serving the sturgeon (cf. Cic.
de Färz. II. 8). — praeconis: he
had been an auctioneer, or crier.
48. rhombos minus, etc.: i.e.
was it because there were no tur-
bots? No; but the fashion of tur-
bots had not come in.
5o. praetorius : Sempronius Ru-
fus, who, as it appears, was defeated
for the prætorship, hence so called
in irony.
5 I. mergos, sea- gul/s, a worth-
less bird for eating. But if some
prætor (hence edixerit) like Rufus
should set the fashion, all the bo/us
zwìvamts would begin to relish them.
53. sordidus, etc.: Horace, true
to his principle of the golden meam,
warns his readers as well against a
meam and parsimonious living. “ Nor
yet did Ofellus fail to see the differ-
ence, etc.”
54. illud: luxurious living.
55. pravum, perverse/y, but
agreeing with te. — Avidienus, a
noted miser.
56. canis: from his dirty habits.
— ex vero, from z/ae facz, i.e. justly.
57. quinquennis: i.e. kept so
long as to have lost their flavor. —
est: from edo.— corna: the tough
berry of the cornel.
58. mutatum, turmed, as we say.
— defundere, serz/e.
94 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
cuius odorem olei nequeas perferre (licebit
ille repotia, natalis, aliosve dierum 6o
festos albatus celebret), cornu ipse bilibri «
caulibus instillat, veteris non parcus aceti.
quali igitur victu sapiens utetur, et horum
utrum imitabitur ?
Hac urget lupus, hac canis, aiunt.
Mundus erit, qua non offendat sordibus, atque 65
in neutram partem cultus miser.
Hic neque servis,
Albuci senis exemplo, dum munia didit,
saevus erit, nec sic ut simplex Naevius unctam
convivis praebebit aquam : vitium hoc quoque magnum.
Accipe nunc victus tenuis quae quantaque secum 7o
adferat.
59. licebit, a/?/.ough ; a relic of
a more general use of licet, only
retained regularly in the present
tense.
6o. repotia, the feas? the day
after the wedding, at the house of
the bridegroom. The miser serves
no better fare than that mentioned,
«even on the highest festivals.—
natalis : the Romans made great
account of birthdays.
61. albatus, ìm ful/ dress, in
which the Romans appeared with
their togas cleansed and whitened.
— cornu... bilibri: opposed to the
more elegant gutta, which was
small, and served as a cruet, while
the miser has a huge horn contain-
ing his whole stock, as it were.—
ipse : i.e. he doles it out himself.
62. non parcus: he keeps his
wine till it sours, and of course has
plenty of vinegar, the only thing of
which he is liberal.
63. horum : the two extremes.
The answer to the question is con-
tained in the following proverb: i.e.
neither, for both are equally bad,
there is danger on both sides. The
true precept is given in v. 65.
In primis valeas bene : nam variae res
65. mundus erit (sc. sapiens):
will be decent so far as not to give
offence by meanness.
66. neutram : neither too miserly
nor toO luxurious. — cultus: geni-
tive of reference with miser ; cf.
cerebri felicem, I. 9. I I. — miser,
pitiab/e, as he would be in case of
excess in either direction. — servis,
etc.: i.e. in giving directions to his
slaves, he punishes them beforehand,
to guard against any carelesSness on
their part, which is an indication of
excessive fastidiousness about his
table; whereas the other is so care-
less in this regard that he lets the
slaves give the guests dirty water.
The wise man will avoid both ex-
tremes.
68. simplex, good -matured, easily
imposed upon by his slaves.
69. vitium, etc.: this particular
matter, negligence in table service,
the poet gives as an example of the
other extreme. Then he changes
the subject entirely to the advan-
tages of a frugal life.
7 I. valeas bene : good health
is the first advantage.
II. 59-9O.]
HORATI SERMONES. - 95
ut noceant homini credas, memor illius escae ,\ , - '
quae simplex olim tibi sederit ; at simul assis-
miscueris elixa, simul conchylia turdis,
dulcia se in bilem vertent, stomachoque tumultum 75
lenta feret pituita.
cena desurgat dubia ?
Vides ut pallidus omnis
Quin corpus onustum
hesternis vitiis animum quoque praegravat una,
atque affigit humo divinae particulam aurae.
Alter, ubi dicto citius curata sopori 8o
membra dedit, vegetus praescripta ad munia surgit.
Hic tamen ad melius poterit transcurrere quondam,
sive diem festum rediens advexerit annus,
seu recreare volet tenuatum corpus, ubique
accedent anni et tractari mollius aetas 85
imbecilla volet; tibi quidnam accedet ad istam
quam puer et validus praesumis mollitiem, seu
dura valetudo inciderit seu tarda senectus ?
Pancidum aprum antiqui laudabant, non quia nasus
illis nullus erat, sed, credo, hac mente, quod hospes . go
73. olim tibi sederit, used to
agree with 3/ou.
75. dulcia, etc.: the ancient and
popular modern idea of physiology.
76. pituita: referring to the
** sluggish humors” of the body,
which, according to ancient ideas,
produced disease.
77. dubia, puzzlimg ; where a
man is puzzled what to take first,
an allusion to Ter. Ae/iorm. III. I. 28,
where the word is comically used in
that sense. — corpus, etc. : i.e. and
not only is the body unhealthy, but
the soul, which ought to be like its
divine original, is weighed down
and deteriorated (cf. Cic. 7'usc. V.
I3 and de Sem. 77).
79. aurae, ether, the finer ele-
ment of which the soul was formed.
8o, alter: the abstemious man.—
curata, etc.: like curare corpus,
whichis constantly used ofrefreshing
the body by eating. — sopori, etc.:
z.e. no indigestion keeps him awake.
82. tamen : i.e. though ordina-
rily abstemious, yet he can at times
indulge more freely, on occasion
either of a festival or of ill health
Or age.
86. tibi, etc.: i.e. but for the epi-
cure no change in that direction is
possible because he has indulged
himself to the extreme before.
89. rancidum, etc.: the frugal man
has also something on hand for an
unexpected guest. This Horace ex-
presses indirectly by the example of
their ancestors who kept their boar
till it was ** high,” a practice which
he attributes to the desire to keep
something in store. The superior-
96 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
tardius adveniens vitiatum commodius quam
integrum edax dominus consumeret.
Hos utinam inter
heroas natum tellus me prima tulisset !
Das aliquid famae, quae carmine gratior aurem
occupat humanam ?
Grandes rhombi patinaeque 95
grande ferunt una cum damno dedecus ; adde
iratum patruum, vicinos, te tibi iniquum
et frustra mortis cupidum, cum deerit egenti
as, laquei pretium.
* Iure,' inquit, * Trausius istis
iurgatur verbis ; ego vectigalia magna IOO
divitiasque habeo tribus amplas regibus.'
Ergo
quod superat non est melius quo insumere possis ?
Cur eget indignus quisquam te divite ?
templa ruunt antiqua deum ?
Quare
Cur, improbe, carae
non aliquid patriae tanto emetiris acervo ? IO5
Uni nimirum recte tibi semper erunt res,
O magnus posthac inimicis risus!
lUterne
ad casus dubios fidet sibi certius, hic qui
pluribus adsuerit mentem corpusque superbum,
an qui contentus parvo metuensque futuri IIO
in pace, ut sapiens, aptarit idonea bello ?
ity of that fashion he indicates by
the wish in v. 92.
94. das aliquid, etc.: then again,
one's reputation is better for this
frugality.
96. damno, ruin ofone's fortunes.
97. iniquum, /atefu/ to, despis-
ing yourself.
99. iure, etc.: the answer of a
rich interlocutor, who excuses his
prodigality by the extent of his for-
tune. — Trausius, some luxurious
liver who had not the fortune to
stand such expenses.
IOO. vectigalia: properly of pub-
lic revenues, but here used purposely
on account of the great estate.
Io2. quod superat, f/ae sum p/us.
— non est, etc.: i.e. suppose you
have this great wealth, are there
not more worthy objects to spend it
OIl.
Io6. uni, etc.: â.e. and in any
case this wealth is uncertain, ex-
pressed by the contrary ironically.
If, then, a change of fortune occurs,
the fall will be more conspicuous and
ruinous than in case of a man who
is frugal even in the midst of wealth.
I I I. aptarit idonea bello, pro-
vides zhe meeds of war, i.e. a frugal
and contented spirit, and habits of
Self-control and abstemiousness (a.
proverbial expression).
II. 9I-I25.]
IHORATI SERMONES. 97
Quo magis his credas, puer hunc ego parvus Ofellum
integris opibus novi non latius usum
quam nunc accisis.
Videas metato in agello
cum pecore et gnatis fortem mercede colonum, II5
* Non ego,' narrantem, * temere edi luce profesta
quicquam praeter olus fumosae cum pede pernae.
Ac mihi seu longum post tempus venerat hospes,
sive operum vacuo gratus conviva per imbrem
vicinus, bene erat non piscibus urbe petitis, I2O
sed pullo atque haedo ; tum pensilis uva secundas
et nux ornabat mensas cum duplice ficu.
Post hoc ludus erat culpa potare magistra,
ac venerata Ceres, ita culmo surgeret alto,
explicuit vino contractae seria frontis. I25
I I 2. quo magis, etc.: to enforce
his doctrine Horace gives the exam-
ple of Ofellus himself, who had lost
his property, and now hires it of its
new proprietor, but, as he himself
says, he is just as well off, having
never indulged himself amid his
better fortune.
I I 3. 1atius: cf. anguste.
II4. metato, confiscated, meas-
ured out by the commissioners, who
assigned lands to the veterans of
the army.
II 5. fortem mercede colonum,
a stura y farmer for häre om the
Jama, he no longer owns.
I I6. narrantem, etc.: his words
prove his content and indomitable
spirit. The description of his mode
of life indicates the frugal style
'which Horace recommends. — non
... temere, moz zviz/.out specia/ rea-
.so/z, i.e. not commonly.
I 18. hospes : the arrival of a
guest gives occasion for some sim-
ple luxuries.
I I9. vacuo : social intercourse
"with his neighbors, at times when
the labors of the field were stopped
by the weather, was also frugally
celebrated, not with foreign luxu-
ries, but with the dainties such as
the farm afforded.
I2I. pensilis uva, raìsìms, grapes
hung up to dry. — secundas, ì.e.
fhe d'essert.
I 22. duplice ficu, sp/iz figs,
hence a'riea'.
I23. ludus: î. e. not the elabo-
rate music, etc., of the cities. —
culpa . . . magistra: with only their
sense of shortcoming to regulate
the drinking, instead of a symposi-
arch, who was appointed at city
feasts for that purpose. Shirking
in such cases would be a culpa.
I 24. venerata Ceres : î. e. the
worship of Ceres, which consisted
in a libation followed by drinking.
— ita: the correlative would be,
ut hoc vinum tibi fundo, or the
like. — surgeret: the indirect rep-
resentative of surge or surgas of
the prayer. The goddess is here,
as often, identified with the grain
of which she was patroness.
I25. seria, the frowning.
98 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
Saeviat atque novos moveat Fortuna tumultus,
quantum hinc imminuet?
VOS,
Quanto aut ego parcius aut
o pueri, nituistis, ut huc novus incola venit ?
Nam propriae telluris erum natura neque illum
nec me nec quemquam statuit: nos expulit ille, I3O
illum aut nequities aut vafri inscitia iuris,
postremum expellet certe vivacior heres.
Nunc ager Umbreni sub nomine, nuper Ofelli
dictus, erit nulli proprius, sed cedet in usum
nunc mihi, nunc alii.
Quocirca vivite fortes, I35
fortiaque adversis opponite pectora rebus.'
III.
Damasippus. Sic raro scribis, ut toto non quater anno
membranam poscas, scriptorum quaeque retexens,
I 27. hinc, from this comditiom in
which we now are. It is implied
in the whole that Ofellus could still
enjoy the simple life he had led in
his prosperity.
128. pueri, his sons who were
working with him. Cf. v. I I 5.
I29. propriae, as his owm.
I3I. nequities, λῖs prodigality ;
regularly opposed to frugalitas:
cf. nequam and frugi. — iuris :
z.e. he will lose it by the tricks of
the law.
I 32. postremum, etc.: at any
rate he won't live forever, and then
the surviving heir will at last dis-
possess him. ,
I33. Umbreni, the veteran to
whom the land had been assigned.
Cf. Ep. II. 171 ff.
I 34. proprius, permanent. — ce-
det, wi// pass. — in usum, to z/ae
possessiom temporarily for use, but
not for permanent property; so that
the tenant is after all as wèll off as
the proprietor.
I 35. vivite fortes, /ive aumdis-
mayed. With this exhortation, Hor-
ace breaks off abruptly, as is his cus-
tom, without a definite close.
SATIRE 3. This Satire has a
peculiarly Horatian double edge.
On the one hand, it ridicules the
Stoic doctrine, três êq>pa)v μαζvetat,
omnem stultum însanum, esse, that
every man except the sage is insane.
Eut at the same time Horace uses
that doctrine in a half-serious way
to assail the vices and follies of
mankind, with the spirit of true
humor, including himself with the
rest. He puts the greater part of
the discourse into the mouth of
Damasippus, a merchant and spec-
ulator, who, having failed in busi-
ness, is about to kill himself, but is
dissuaded therefrom, and turns Stoic
II. I26—136, III. I-I4.]
99
HORATI SERMONES.
iratus tibi, quod, vini somnique benignus,
nil dignum sermone canas.
Saturnalibus huc fugisti.
dic aliquid dignum promissis !
„Culpantur frustra calami, immeritusque laborat
iratis natus paries dis atque poetis.
Atqui voltus erat multa et praeclara minantis,
si vacuum tepido cepisset villula tecto.
Quid fiet ? At ipsis
Sobrius ergo 5
Incipe ! Nil est.
IO
Quorsum pertinuit stipare Platona Menandro,
Eupolin, Archilochum, comites educere tantos ?
Invidiam placare paras virtute relicta ?
Contemnere, miser!
preacher. The conversation is in-
troduced abruptly by the Stoic, who
assails Horace for his indolence.
This diatribe Horace puts in a half-
serious way, ridiculing the meddle-
someness and want of tact of the
importunate Stoic, but at the same
time satirizing himself, and no doubt
justly.
2. membranam poscas : for en-
grossing a new finished composition.
— scriptorum : neuter, with quae-
que. — retexens: ì.e. never finish-
ing anything satisfactory, but always
undoing and working Over his old
poems.
3. vini somnique : genitive af-
ter benignus ; ima'u4gimg im (cf.
cultus miser, II. 2. 66).
4. dignum sermone, zworf/ ta/Ä-
zmg about ; i.e. that would bring
you any fame if you published it. —
quid fiet, JVZaaz is goimg to be dome ?
z.e. What are you going to do? —
ipsis: i.e. just at the time of the
holidays, when festivity was at its
height, indicating a set purpose to
do something.
5. Saturnalibus : this festival
was a time of universal freedom
from restraint for all classes. — huc :
to Horace's Sabine estate. — sobri-
Vitanda est improba Siren
us: as opposed to the festivity of
the city.
6. dic, zvrite. — promissis : giv-
en by his acts in coming away from
the city — nil est, iz's of mo use,
nothing comes of it.
7. laborat, suffers, being beaten
by the poet in his vexation.
8. iratis : the usual way of ex-
pressing that a person is born to
misfortune, but here varied by the
humorous insertion of poetis.
9. atqui: î. e. though you do
nothing, yet you had the expression
of one who promised great feats.
Io. vacuum, at /eisure.— cepis-
set: an indirect quotation from the
supposed threat expressed in his
cOuntenance.
I I. Platona: on account of the
philosophical tendency of his Sat-
ires. — Menandro: on account of
the close connection of satire with
comedy.
I 2. Eupolin : as representing
the Old Comedy. — Archilochum :
as the inventor of the Epode.
I3. virtute: referring to his sup-
posed abandonment of satire, and
consequently of the cause of good
morals, in order to avoid the jeal-
ousy and ill-will which his satire had
:
I00
[LIB. II.
HORATI SERMONES.
desidia, aut quicquid vita meliore parasti
I5
ponendum aequo animo. Hor. Di te, Damasippe, deaeque
verum ob consilium donent tonsore.
Damz. Postquam omnis res mea
tam bene me nosti ?
Ianum
Sed unde
g*
ad medium fracta est, aliena negotia curo,
excussus propriis.
Olim nam quaerere amabam,
2O
quo vafer ille pedes lavisset Sisyphus aere,
quid sculptum infabre, quid fusum durius esset;
callidus huic signo ponebam milia centum ;
hortos egregiasque domos mercarier unus
cum lucro noram ; unde frequentia Mercuriale
imposuere mihi cognomen compita.
25
Ho7r. Novi,
et miror morbi purgatum te illius. Dam. Atqui
occasioned ; i.e. do you expect to
avoid ill-will by ceasing to write ?
On the contrary, you will only be
despised for want of courage.
I 5. quicquid: i.e. his fame.
I6. ponendum aequo animo,
3/ou musz ôe content to lay aside. —
di te, etc.: Horace replies, begin-
ming as if he were going to wish
Damasippus the greatest blessings,
but ends with the thing he thinks
the philosopher needs most, a bar-
ὸer, on account of the long beard
affected by philosophers.
I8. postquam, etc.: in answer
to Horace's query, how Damasippus
came to know him so well, the Stoic
replies, that, having failed in his
own business, he has taken up other
people's, that is to say, has become
a philosopher. — Ianum : one of
the three arches near the Forum, at
Rome, sacred to Janus, in or around
which were the shops of the money
lenders. Damasippus means that
his fortune was lost by borrowing
money, and making umprofitable in-
Vestments.
20, quaerere, etc, : he used to
;
:
•
•
$
;
:
3
:
:
buy up objects Of art and bric-à-
brac.
2 I. quo . . . aere : a humorous
expression for antique bronze ves-
sels of Corinth.
22. quid sculptum infabre: î. e.
works of sculpture whose value de-
pended on their antiquity, of which
their rudeness was proof. — fusum
durius: works in metal of the
same kind.
23. callidus, ì.e. a shrewd judge
of values. — ponebam, îmzwested.
25. frequentia . . . compita, the
crozvds at fhe ** comrmers,” where the
auction sales took place. — Mercu-
riale : in apposition with cogno-
men, but made to agree with it in
gender; favorize of //ercury, For-
zzzmze's ozvmz cÅ?a?.
27. morbi: in accordance with
the Stoic way of thinking, Horace
speaks of this devotion to gain as a
disease (trá0os) or insanity. The
genitive is in imitation of the Greek
construction of separation, justified,
however, by the Latin construction
of relative adjectives. Cf. plenus
and vacuus,
III. I 5—4 I.]
HORATI SERMONES, 101
emovit veterem mire novus, ut solet, in cor
traiecto lateris miseri capitisve dolore,
ut lethargicus hic cum fit pugil et medicum urget. 3O
Hor. Dum ne quid simile huic, esto ut libet.
bone, ne te
Damz. O
frustrere ; insanis et tu stultique prope omnes,
si quid Stertinius veri crepat, unde ego mira
descripsi docilis praecepta haec, tempore quo me
solatus iussit sapientem pascere barbam 35
atque a Fabricio non tristem ponte reverti.
Nam, male re gesta, cum vellem mittere operto
me capite in flumen, dexter stetit et * Cave faxis
te quicquam indignum ! Pudor' inquit “te malus angit,
insanos qui inter vereare insanus haberi. 4O
Primum nam inquiram quid sit furere : hoc si erit in te
28. mire, it is marz/e/lous λοzv,
etc. The whole idea is, that one
disease has been cured by another.
3o. lethargicus, etc.: the patient
suffering under a lethargy suddenly
has a paroxysm of violence and
attacks his physician, this being an
instance of one form of madness
driving out another.
3 I. dum, etc. : Horace in his
reply jocosely says, provided your
madness does not take that violent
like. This of cóürse implies that
Damasippus has a craze, while Hor-
ace is sound, e Damasippus in
bis answer proceeds tÒ Sethri
On that subject, and so gives-the
long discussion of the Stoic paradox,
Tás áqpaov μαívetat.
33. Stertiniüs, an unknown
Stoic, probably a windy street-
preacher like Crispinus. — crepat,
£f //.ere is amy trut/, âm zhe chatzer
of Stertimâ us. The word seems to
be carelessly used from Horace's
standpoint, instead of Damasippus'.
ight '
34. descripsi, copied, not liter-
ally, but as much as adopted.
35. sapientem ... barbam : the
philosophers allowed the beard to
grow long, originally as a mark of
neglect of their persons.
36. Fabricio, the bridge to the isl-
and in the Tiber, built B.C. 62, as ap-
pears from the inscription still extant.
38. dexter, at my side ; but the
side on which he appeared was a
good omen also.
39. te indignum, zumbecom ìng to
3/ou, or s/iam e/ul. — malus, fa/se ;
unfounded, and so bad under the
circumstances. — angit: έ.e. this is
the reasom why you are about to
destroy yourself.
4o. insanos : containing the gist
of the whole matter. These people
before whom you are ashamed of
appearing to be insane on account
of having lost your property in pur-
suit of a craze, are themselves in-
sane, and hence you need have no
shame about it.
4I. primum, etc.: he begins in

102 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
solo, nil verbi pereas quin fortiter addam.
Quem mala stultitia et quemcumque inscitia veri
caecum agit, insanum Chrysippi porticus et grex
autumat.
excepto sapiente, tenet.
Haec populos, haec magnos formula reges, 45
Nunc accipe quare
desipiant omnes aeque ac tu, qui tibi nomen
insano posuere.
Velut silvis, ubi passim
palantis error certo de tramite pellit,
ille sinistrorsum, hic dextrorsum abit : unus utrique 5o
error, sed variis illudit partibus: hoc te
crede modo insanum, nihilo ut sapientior ille,
qui te deridet, caudam trahat.
Est genus unum
stultitiae nihilum metuenda timentis, ut ignis,
ut rupis fluviosque in campo obstare queratur; 55
alterum et huic varum et nihilo sapientius ignis
per medios fluviosque ruentis : clamet amica
mater, honesta soror cum cognatis, pater, uxor,
* Hic fossa est ingens, hic rupes maxima, serva!'
the regular philosophical, and espe-
cially Stoic style, in which defini-
tions played a prominent part. —
hoc si erit, etc.: i.e. ** if you are
the only person who comes under
the description, I will not say a
word to hinder you.”
43. mala, perverse ; cf. prava,
v. 22o. — stultitia, fo/?y ; in the
technical sense, as opposed to the
sapientia of the sage.
44. caecum agit, drives ölimd/y
om, without the guidance of philo-
sophical reason. — Chrysippi, the
second great expounder of the Stoic
doctrines, of whom it was Said,
Ei μ*) ^yàp ìv Xpúαιττοs, oùk άν ήν
>Toà. — porticus, the > toà Troukf\m,
a colonnade in which Zeno and his
followers taught. — grex, zroupe ;
a semi-comical expression for the
school or sect.
45. autumat, affìrms zo be ; a
rather formal expression. — popu-
1os, zwhole matioms together, without
exception. — formula: i.e. the def-
inition given above.
46. tenet, emóraces.
5o. unus . . . error: ì.e.
rance of the true path.
5 I. partibus, direcziomas.
53. caudam trahat, ìs made a
foo? of (i.e. is as crazy as you);
an allusion to the boys in the street
vvho make fools of the half-witted
by fastening some appendage to
them behind. — est genus, etc. :
the first class think there are dan-
gers, etc., where there are none, ?.e.
have positive delusions.
56. alterum : the second class
do not see things that really exist.
57. amica: with mater.
58. honesta : with soror. The
igno-
III. 42—7 I.]
HORATI SERMONES. 103
non magis audierit quam Fufius ebrius olim, 6o
cum Ilionam edormit, Catienis mille ducentis
* Mater, te appe//o /' clamantibus.
Huic ego volgus
errori similem cunctum insanire docebo.
Insanit veteres statuas Damasippus emendo :
integer est mentis Damasippi creditor ?
EstO ! 65
“ Accipe quod numquam reddas mihi ' si tibi dicam,
tune insanus eris si acceperis ? an magis excors
reiecta praeda, quam praesens Mercurius fert ?
Scribe decem a Nerio ; non est satis : adde Cicutae
nodosi tabulas centum, mille adde catenas : 7o
effugiet tamen haec sceleratus vincula Proteus.
blindness of the madman is shown
by these details. No warning can
make him take care.
6o. Fufius, etc. : it appears that
this actor on one , occasion playing
Ilione, in Pacuvius' play of that
name, really went to sleep, so that
he did not hear the ghost of Dei-
philus (the son of Ilione and Poly-
mestor) when it rose and addressed
to her the words, mater te appello.
Catienus was playing the ghost.
6I. edormit, s?epz z/,7rozg/. z/ae
parz of: a humorous use of the
construction in I. 5. 63, saltare
Cyclopa. — mille ducentis: a
f/.ousand, with clamantibus, just
double the usual number 6oo, con-
tinuing the supposition in audierit.
62. huic ... errori: ì.e. not see-
ing what is really the case. All
who do not have right views of
things of course have a similar de-
lusion. -
63. similem : sc. errorem; cog.
acc. with insanire.
64. insanit, /as a craze ; because
he does not set the right value on
such things.
65. creditor: the one who would
particularly regard Damasippus as
insane, — esto, well ; i.e, suppose
he is for a moment, until it is shown
by an example that he is not.
66. accipe, etc.: a supposed case
which shows that Damasippus is the
sounder man of the two, because
he only takes money which he cer-
tainly can't pay back.
68. praesens, propítious.
69. scribe, etc.: addressed to the
creditor. ** Take all the securities
you can, yet the debtor will after
all escape you.” The usual way of
paying money was through a banker
(a Nerio), and here the creditor is
to draw ten drafts on Nerius, which
vwould be evidence tenfold of the
payment. — Cicutae, a usurer, who
would of course be skilfül in secur-
ing his debts. Cf. v. I75.
7o. nodosi: equivalent to crafty,
shrewd in making knots to bind the
debtor. — mille, etc.: another more
general expression for the same
idea of taking security, but with a
reference to Proteus.
71. Proteus, the famous pro-
phetic sea-divinity who only gave
his answers when caught and bound,
and who had the power of changing
into all sorts of forms to avoid cap-
ture. The whole means simply, the
debtor will be more difficult to catch
104 EHORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
Cum rapies in ius malis ridentem alienis,
fiet aper, modo avis, modo saxum, et, cum volet, arbor.
Si male rem gerere insani est, contra bene sani,
putidius multo cerebrum est, mihi crede, Perelli 75
dictantis quod tu numquam rescribere possis.
Audire atque togam iubeo componere, quisquis
ambitione mala aut argenti pallet amore,
quisquis luxuria tristive superstitione
aut alio mentis morbo calet ; huc propius me, 8o
dum doceo insanire omnis, vos ordine adite.
Danda est ellebori multo pars maxima avaris;
nescio an Anticyram ratio illis destinet omnem.
Heredes Staberi summam incidere sepulchro,
ni sic fecissent, gladiatorum dare centum 85
damnati populo paria atque epulum arbitrio Arri,
than a Proteus (see Hom. Od. IV.
456, and cf. Æρ. I. I. 9o).
72. malis, etc: laughämg az λόs
creditor's expense ; the allusion is
to Hom. Od. XX. 347, though the
sense there is a forced laugh.
75. putidius, less soumd. — Pe-
relli, the creditor.
76. dictantis, takimg receipts for
momey, literally dictating what the
debtor shall write for the money
which, etc. — tu : the debtor. — re-
scribere, repay.
77. audire, etc.: the Stoic takes
up the other branches of the sub-
ject, and in a more formal manner,
so he purposely bids his hearers
arrange themselves for a long ser-
II1OI).
78. ambitione, etc.: the four
forms of insanity are ambitiom, ava-
rice, prodigality, and superstitiom.
Of these Stertinius takes up first
avarice, as the most violent form. —
argenti, here momey, as in I. I. 86,
not, as often, silver ware.
81. ordine, one âfter the other.
82. ellebori: the usual medicine
for insanity.
83. nescio an, / dom't Âmozv but,
as usual. — Anticyram, the city in
Greece whence the best hellebore
was brought. — ratio, soumd reason,
z.e. true philosophy, which regards
this as the prevailing and miost ruin-
ous form of insanity.
84. heredes, etc.: the poet shows
the insanity of avarice by the exam-
ple of one Staberius, who ordered
the amount of his estate to be carved
on his tombstone, thinking that the
best epitaph he could have.
85. fecissent: for the future per-
fect used in the will. — dare: the
penalty that the heirs were to pay
if they failed to perform.
86. damnati: the technical words
were heres dammas esto. — epulum :
a public banquet like a “barbecue,”
such as was often given at Rome
for political purposes. — arbitrio
Arri: ì.e. a sumptuous one, such
III. 72—Io3.]
HORATI SERMONES. 105
frumenti quantum metit Africa.
* Sive ego pjave
seu recte hoc volui, ne sis patruus mihi.' Credo
hoc Staberi prudentem animum vidisse. Quid ergo
sensit, cum summam patrimoni insculpere saxo 9O
heredes voluit ?
Quoad vixit, credidit ingens
pauperiem vitium et cavit nihil acrius, ut, si
forte minus locuples uno quadrante perisset,
ipse videretur sibi nequior: omnis enim res,
virtus, fama, decus, divina humanaque pulchris 95
divitiis parent ; quas qui construxerit, ille
clarus erit, fortis, iustus.
et quicquid volet.
speravit magnae laudi fore.
Sapiensne ?
Hoc, veluti virtute paratum,
Etiam, et rex,
Quid simile isti
Graecus Aristippus,? qui servos proicere aurum IOO
in media iussit Libya, quia tardius irent
propter onus segnes.
Uter est insanior horum ? —
Nil agit exemplum, litem quod lite resolvit.
as Q. Arrius would prescribe, who
gave a famous funeral banquet B.C.
59 to several thousand citizens.
He is also referred to in v. 243.
87. frumenti, etc. : also a distri-
bution of grain to the people. Per-
haps et has fallen out after fru-
menti. — quantum, etc. : a pro-
verbial expression. — sive, etc. : a
quotation from the will. ^
88. patruus, zum/€imd, as not an
indulgent judge like a father, a pro-
verbial expression.
89. hoc : ì.e. that they would re-
gard his fancy as absurd. — quid
. . . sensit, zwhat zwas λέs idea ?
92. acrius: sc.quam pauperiem.
94. nequior, a more thrìfì/ess
persom.
96. parent, are suòject zo, as
men think.
97. sapiensne: this short ques-
tion is in the style of the Stoic argu-
mcnt, and is also a Stoic idea. —
rex: following out the Stoic idea,
that the sapiens is the only king,
while all stulti are slaves.
98. hoc : the glory of being rich.
— paratum, zwom, or gaï med, like
glory in war, or any other noble
attainment.
99. simile : sc. fecit ; how un-
like this was Aristippus' conduct,
who represents the other extreme
of wastefulness.
IOO. Aristippus, the disciple of
Socrates, and founder of the Cyre-
naic school. His principle was to
enjoy the good things of life, but
so as not to be a slave to them.
Hence his wastefulmess of the gold
because it hindered his journey.
IOI. Libya: the country of gold,
where any one else would have
gathered all he could.
Io2. uter, etc. : î. e. since both go
tO extremes.
Io3. nil agit, etc.: i.e. his case
¢*
106 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
Si quis emat citharas, emptas comportet in unum,
nec studio citharae nec musae deditus ulli, IO5
si scalpra et formas non sutor, nautica vela
aversus mercaturis, delirus et amens
undique dicatur merito.
Qui discrepat istis
qui nummos aurumque recondit, nescius uti
compositis, metuensque velut contingere sacrum ? IIo
Si quis ad ingentem frumenti semper acervum
porrectus vigilet cum longo fuste, neque illinc
audeat esuriens dominus contingere granum,
ac potius foliis parcus vescatur amaris;
si positis intus Chii veterisque Falerni II5
mille cadis — nihil est, tercentum milibus — acre
potet acetum ; age, si et stramentis incubet, unde-
Octoginta annos natus, cui stragula vestis,
blattarum ac tinearum epulae, putrescat in arca:
nimirum insanus paucis videatur, eo quod I2O
maxima pars hominum morbo iactatur eodem.
Pilius aut etiam haec libertus ut ebibat heres,
dis inimice senex, custodis ?
INe tibi desit ?
Quantulum enim summae curtabit quisque dierum,
proves nothing, because one question
(litem) is not solved by introdu-
cing another; namely, whether he
was not insane also. Still Horace
has gained the opportunity to crit-
icise the other extreme, which was
what he wanted. He now turns to
an example about which there can
be no doubt, of a man collecting
things which he can't use, which is
really the miser's case.
Io5. musae, òramc/. of /// usic.
Io6. non sutor, moz beimg a s/ioe-
maÂer.
Io8. qui discrepat: /;ozv, ì.e.
not at all, for the miser is just like
the cases supposed.
•
I Io. sacrum : which it would be
sacrilege to use. Cf. I. 3. 7I.
II 3. esuriens dominus, z/o/«g/.
szarz/img, ama, z/ae ozvmer.
I2o. nimirum, etc.: the pre-
ceding has prepared us to expect
the natural conclusion, ** He would
seem insane to everybody,” but this
is changed to the idea in the text,
to show more clearly that this in-
sanity is an almost universal one.
I2I. iactatur, is sufferâng, prop-
erly of a fever.
I 23. dis inimice, God.forsakem.
The poet changes to a direct appeal
to the miser himself, and shows the
folly of his course.
III. IO4-142.]
107
HORATI SERMONES.
unguere si caulis oleo meliore caputque I25
coeperis impexa foedum porrigine ?
Quare,
si quidvis satis est, periuras, surripis, aufers
undique ? Tun' sanus ?
Populum si caedere saxis
incipias servosve tuos quos aere pararis,
insanum te omnes pueri clamentque puellae : I3O
cum laqueo uxorem interimis matremque veneno,
incolumi capite es?
Argis,
Quid enim?
Neque tu hoc facis
nec ferro ut demens genetricem occidis Orestes.
An tu reris eum occisa insanisse parente,
ac non ante malis dementem actum Furiis quam I35
in matris iugulo ferrum tepefecit acutum ?
Quin, ex quo est habitus male tutae mentis Orestes,
nil sane fecit quod tu reprehendere possis :
non Pyladen ferro violare aususve sororem
Electram, tantum maledicit utrique, vocando I4O
hanc Furiam, hunc aliud, iussit quod splendida bilis.
Pauper Opimius argenti positi intus et auri,
I 27, quidvis, ?.e. so little as you
u!S€.
I 28. populum, etc.: à.e. the
crimes he commits for the sake of
money are as much marks ofinsanity
as the conduct described would be.
I 3o. pueri, puellae : proverbial;
z.e. everybody.
I 32. quid enim? zw/y yes (cf. I.
I. 7), adopting the miser's view
ironically. — neque tu, etc. : the
miser would argue that he was not
insane, because in their ignorance
of the true essence of human con-
duct men take the accidents of
place, time, and circumstance, for
the real characteristics of those
actions which are held to be insane,
as in the case of Orestes. Because
the deed is not done at Argos, nor
with the sword, it is not insane like
that of Orestes.
I 34. an tu reris, etc.: i.e. (am
I not right in my interpretation of
the matter?) or do you suppose that
Orestes went mad only after killing
his mother? The Stoic doctrine
makes all criminal conduct evidence
of insanity in itself. In fact, after
his crime, Orestes did nothing that
could be called insane at all. All
this goes to prove the Stoic doc-
trine, that all misconduct is insane.
I42. pauper, etc.: another exam-
ple to show the insanity of avarice.
Opimius is called poor, because,
with all his wealth, he acts like a
poor man. — argenti: Horace's fa-
vorite genitive with adjectives; cf.
Gr. 2I8, c.
108
[LIB. II.
HORATI SERMONES,
qui Veientanum festis potare diebus
Campana solitus trulla vappamque profestis,
quondam lethargo grandi est oppressus, ut heres I45
iam circum loculos et clavis laetus dvansque
Curreret.
Hunc medicus multum celer atque fidelis
excitat hoc pacto : mensam poni iubet atque
effundi saccos nummorum, accedere pluris
ad numerandum ; hominem sic erigit. Addit et illud, 15o
* Ni tua custodis, avidus iam haec auferet heres.'
* Men' vivo ? '
vis ? '
* Ut vivas, igitur, vigila, hoc age.'
* Quid
* Deficient inopem venae te, ni cibus atque
ingens accedit stomacho fultura ruenti.
Tu cessas ? Agedum, sume hoc ptisanarium oryzae.' 155
* Quanti emptae ?'
sibus.' * Eheu !
* Parvo.'
* Quanti, ergo ? ' * Octus-
quid refert, morbo an furtis pereamque rapinis ?'
Quisnam igitur sanus ?
rus ?
Stultus et insanus.
continuo sanus ? Minime.
I43. Veientanum, a cheap wine.
I44. Campana, common earthen-
ware. Cf. I. 6. I I8.
I45. heres, etc. : î. e. expecting
the man to die at once.
I46. loculos, coffers.
I48. hoc pacto: im z/ie fo//ozw-
£ng mammer, i.e. by means of his
ruling passion.
I 5o. ad numerandum: as if to
divide the estate, considering him
alrcady dcad. -
I 52. hoc age, Zoo a/iz/e mozv.
I 57. furtis pereamque rapinis:
i.e. the enormously expensive med-
icine required to cure him.
I 58, quisnam sanus: Horace
Qui non stultus. Quid ava-
Quid, si quis non sit avarus,
Cur, Stoice ? Dicam. I6o
represents Damasippus as if per-
suaded by these examples, asking,
** Who, then, is sane?” but he is
really speaking himself, and is not
careful of the dramatic form. — qui
non stultus: the natural Stoic am-
swer, for according to that doctrine,
the sapiens is the only perfect man,
and all others are alike szzz/tì. —
quid avarus (sc. est) : a recapit-
ulation of the preceding exposition
i11 a formal shape, to prepare for
the turn in si quis non, etc. The
whole of this discussion in dis-
jointed questions is in the Stoic
style of argument.
I6o. continuo, at omce ; i.e, does
III. I43-174.]
109
HORATI SERMONES,
Non est cardiacus (Craterum dixisse putato)
hic aeger : recte est igitur surgetque ?
Negabit,
quod latus aut renes morbo temptentur acuto.
Non est periurus neque sordidus : immolet aequis
hic porcum Laribus; verum ambitiosus et audax : 165
naviget Anticyram. Quid enim differt, barathrone
dones quicquid habes, an numquam utare paratis ?
Servius Oppidius Canusi duo praedia, dives
antiquo censu, gnatis divisse duobus
fertur, et hoc moriens pueris dixisse vocatis I7o
ad lectum : * Postquam te talos, Aule, nucesque
ferre sinu laxo, donare et ludere vidi,
te, Tiberi, numerare, cavis abscondere tristem,
extimui ne vos ageret vesania discors,
it at once follow if the man is free
from avarice that he is sound? The
Stoic replies, no ; and illustrates by
the case of disorders of the body,
to which the Stoics were fond of
likening the failings of the soul
(πάθm).
I6I. cardiacus, trozzö/ed zwif/è
/,eartózzr/z. — Craterum, a distin-
guished physician, Cic. At/. XII. I3
and I4.
I63. quod, etc.: i.e. though he
has no disorder of the stomach, yet
his lungs or his kidneys are affected,
so that he is none the less a sick man.
I64. periurus neque sordidus :
vices characteristic of the avaricious
man. — immolet: i.e. let him be
thankful for that ; lit. let him make
a sacrifice of purification to the
household gods, as it would seem
from this passage to have been cus-
tomary upon recovery from disease.
I65. ambitiosus, etc. : vices the
opposite of avarice, because the
course of ambition was attended
with enormous expense, and accom-
panied by luxurious living intended
to gain popularity. Hence the com-
parison in the next verse, quid
enim, etc. — audax, recÃ/ess.
I66. naviget, etc.: i.e. that is
equally a mark of insanity with the
other. — barathro : î. e. recklessly
spend in the pursuit of ambition.
I68. Servius, etc. : he illustrates
by the case of a father who saw his
two sons affected by opposite evil
tendencies (insania discors), one
devoted to avarice, and the other to
reckless extravagance. He exhorts
them accordingly, but particularly
against the recklessness of expendi-
ture for ambition (v. I 79), to which
the latter would be especially liable.
I69. antiquo censu, accordi mg.
to zhe ο/α ratimg (cf. ** before the
war**), when fortunes were less
gigantic. — divisse (= divisisse),
for dividse, like faxe.
I 7 I. talos, nucesque : his play-
things. The Roman boys appar-
ently used nuts for marbles.
I 72. sinu laxo : î. e. carelessly.
— ludere, gambling with them.
173. tristem, i.e. anxiously, for
fear of losing them.
I 74. discors, im contrary direc-
110
[LIB. II.
HORATI SERMONES.
tu Nomentanum, tu ne sequerere Cicutam. I75
Quare per divos oratus uterque Penatis,
tu cave ne minuas, tu ne maius facias id
quod satis esse putat pater et natura coercet.
IPraeterea ne vos titillet gloria, iure
iurando obstringam ambo : uter aedilis fueritve I8o
vestrum praetor, is intestabilis et sacer esto.
In cicere atque faba bona tu perdasque lupinis,
latus ut in Circo spatiere et aeneus ut stes,
nudus agris, nudus nummis, insane, paternis ?
Scilicet ut plausus, quos fert Agrippa, feras tu, I85
astuta ingenuum volpes imitata leonem !' —
* Ne quis humasse velit Aiacem, Atrida, vetas cur ?'
* Rex sum.'
* Nil ultra quaero plebeius.'
* Et aequam
rem imperito ; ac si cui videor non iustus, inulto
&ioms ; one a spendthrift, and the
other a miser.
175. Nomentanum : cf. II. I.
22. — Cicutam : cf. v. 69.
I76. oratus, öe emtreated; but
agreeing with uterque, which is
appositive with tu . . . tu.
I 78. quod coercet: zo zw/.ic/.
mature sets a /imit, i.e. the require-
ments of nature ; cf. I. I. 5o.
179. vos titillet, ticÃ/e your famcy.
181. intestabilis, imcapab/e of
imherizimg, with other legal disabil-
ities. The oath consisted in the
young men assenting to the curse.
I82. in cicere: distribution of
food to the lower classes, for the
sake of popularity, especially on the
part of the ædile at the Floralia.
I83. latus spatiere, maÂe a
spreaa'; referring to the state in
which he would appear at the games
as an official. The whole is a jocose
description of the advantages of
prominent position. — aeneus: in
a Statue.
I84. nudus, etc.: cf. note to v. I64.
I85. Agrippa, a really great man,
whom the ambitious aspirant could
only feebly imitateby his popular arts.
I87. ne quis : with a very sud-
den transition, the Stoic illustrates
the insanity of ambition by a sup-
posed dialogue between Agamem-
non and a common soldier in his
army, by which it is shown that the
ambitious king of kings is quite as
insane as Ajax, to whose body he
refuses burial. — humasse : the in-
finitive perfect in this use is archaic,
and imitated from legal language.
I88. rex sum : i.e. I have the
right to do as I will without criti-
cism from my subjects. — nil ultra,
etc.: i.e. ifyou put it On that ground,
I have nothing more to say, being
only a humble common soldier. —
et aequam, etc.: the king, as if
conscious of the weakness of his
position, comes down from his arrO-
gance, and tries to justify himself.
I89. ac si cui, etc.: a still fur-
ther concession, as the king gradu-
ally weakens.
III. I75-203.]
HORATI SERMONES. 111
dicere quod sentit permitto.'
* Maxime regum, I9O
di tibi dent capta classem reducere Troia !
Ergo consulere et mox respondere licebit ?'
* Consule.'
* Cur Aiax, heros ab Achille secundus,
putescit, totiens servatis clarus Achivis ?
Guadeat ut populus Priami Priamusque inhumato, 195
per quem tot iuvenes patrio caruere sepulchro ?'
* Mille ovium insanus morti dedit, inclutum Ulixen
et Menelaum una mecum se occidere clamans.'
* Tu, cum pro vitula statuis dulcem Aulide natam
ante aras, spargisque mola caput, improbe, salsa, 2OO
rectum animi servas ? '
enim Aiax
fecit, cum stravit ferro pecus ?
* Quorsum ?'
* Insanus quid
Abstinuit vim
uxore et gnato ; mala multa precatus Atridis,
I9 I. di tibi dent, etc.: imitation
of /7. I. I8; a polite response to the
graciously given permission.
I92. consulere, respondere :
technical words of submitting ques-
tions to be decided by a juriscon-
sult. The latter word must refer to
the king, who is here the person
consulted. The attitude of a client
accords with the assumed humility
of the soldier playing Stoic.
I93. ab Achille secundus : cf.
//. II. 768.
I94. putescit, i.e. unburied.
I95, gaudeat, etc.: an imitation
of 77. I. 255. The disgrace of their
enemy would be a joy to Priam and
his people.
I97. mille; here treated as a
substantive, like milia. — insanus:
the main point in the whole. After
the award of the arms of Achilles to
Ulysses, Ajax went mad and slew a
flock of sheep, thinking them to be
the Greek heroes, in which delusion
consisted his insanity.
I99. tu cum pro vitula, etc. :
the treating of Iphigenia as a vic-
tim, instead of a heifer was, the
soldier argues, no less a mark of
insanity than the delusion of Ajax.
2OO. improbe, zumzmatura/ father,
or monster. — mola, a regular ac-
companiment of a sacrifice. Prob-
ably because meal and salt were the
necessaries of life.
2OI. rectum animi : 2.e. rectum
animum, or rectum statum ani-
mi, as opposed to its overthrow
in insanity. — quorsum : sc. ten-
dis, or haec pertinet, zwhaz do you
7neam òy f/.az ? what does that
prove ? — insanus : î. e. when you
consider him insane, or regard these
as marks of his insanity. — quid
enim, zJ/y / zw/iat, etc. ; where
enim is explanatory of the implied
statement that Agamemnon is him-
self insane.
2o2. abstinuit vim, he Ãep? /iis
z/io/ent hamas.
2o3. mala multa: angry words
were not considered proof of mad-
ness (cf. v. I4o).
1]2 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
non ille aut Teucrum aut ipsum violavit Ulixen.'
* Verum ego, ut haerentis adverso litore navis 2O5
eriperem, prudens placavi sanguine divos.'
* Nempe tuo, furiose.'
* Meo, sed non furiosus.'
Qui species alias veris scelerisque tumultu
permixtas capiet, commotus habebitur, atque
stultitiane erret nihilum distabit an ira. 2IO
Aiax immeritos cum occidit desipit agnos :
cum prudens scelus ob titulos admittis inanis,
stas animo, et purum est vitio tibi, cum tumidum est, cor?
Si quis lectica nitidam gestare amet agnam,
huic vestem, ut gnatae, paret, ancillas paret, aurum, 215
Rufam aut Pusillam appellet, fortique marito
destinet uxorem, interdicto huic omne adimat ius
praetor, et ad sanos abeat tutela propinquos.
2o4. non ille : cf. multum ille,
Virg. Æn. I. 3. — ipsum : as op-
posed to the sheep.
2o5. adverso, opposite to where
he then was.
2o6. prudens: as opposed to
insanus ; i// /// y zvise cozz/zse?.
2O7. tuo : a natural mark of ip-
sanity, and hence the man adds
furiose, indicating the most violent
form of madness.
2o8. qui, etc.: in answer to the
protest of Agamemnon, the Stoic
proceeds to give a definition of in-
sanity, as consisting in delusion,
which he afterwards , applies in v.
2I I. — species, comceptio;zs, ideas
of objects, etc. — veris: the abla-
tive on account of the comparative
force of alias. The ablative after
comparatives is originally an abla-
tive of separation. — tumultu, f/ie
craze, the disturbed state of the
mind from criminal desires, in which
it is incapable of calm reasoning.
2O9. commotus, tum souma, of
shaken intellect,
2IO. stultitia: like Agamemnon
from ambition, to which passion the
Stoic refers the Trojan expedition ;
cf. v. 2I2. — ira: as Ajax ; cf. v.
2 I I.
212. prudens ; cf. v. 2o6. — ti-
tulos, /aomors ; strictly the inscrip-
tions containing the dignities at-
tained by a Roman, and hung up in
the atrium of his descendants, by
his wax mask ; cf. I. 6. I 7. — in-
anis: as having no real value to the
philosophic mind. A^
2 I 3. stas animo ; cf. commo-
tus, v. 2O9. — cor: including the
intellect as well as the moral powers.
2 I 4. si quis, etc. : the Stoic
makes his meaning plain by an ex-
ample that cannot be mistaken, the
converse of the treatment of Iphi-
genia. — nitidam, cossetted, well
Κept and fed.
2I6. Rufam, Pusillam, names
of girls, the second a diminutive of
affection. — forti, stupra y ; merely
as a masculine epithet.
2 I 7. interdicto, etc. : a madman
III. 204—231.]
EHORATI SERMONES. 113
Quid ? si quis gnatam pro muta devovet agna,
integer est animi ?
Ne dixeris.
Ergo ubi prava 22O
stultitia, hic summa est insania ; qui sceleratus,
et furiosus erit ; quem cepit vitrea fama,
hunc circumtonuit gaudens Bellona cruentis.
Nunc age, luxuriam et Nomentanum arripe mecum ;
vincet enim stultos ratio insanire nepotes. 225
Hic simul accepit patrimoni mille talenta,
edicit, piscator uti, pomarius, auceps,
unguentarius, ac Tusci turba impia vici,
cum scurris fartor, cum Velabro omne macellum, 229
mane domum veniant. Quid tum ? Venere frequentes.
Verba facit leno : * Quicquid mihi, quicquid et horum
could be deprived of the custody
and care of his estate by means of
a proceeding before the prætor.
22 I. stultitia: folly consisting
in a wrong estimate of the value of
things. — sceleratus: inasmuch as
crime proceeds from wrong concep-
tions ; cf. v. 2o8.
222. vitrea, g?izzerimg. — fama,
etc.: the thing to be proved, as
implied in v. 165. But the words
refer immediately to Agamemnon,
whose example has been last re-
ferred to.
223. hunc, etc. : z.e. he is crazed,
like the priests of Bellona, who per-
formed an orgiastic worship of the
goddess, in which they raved and
cut themselves with knives. — cir-
cumtonuit: like attonitus, of the
loss of the senses produced by light-
Ining. '
, 224. nunc, etc.: the third head,
luxurious living. — Nomentanum :
cf. v. I75. — arripe : cf. II. I. 69.
225. vincet ratio: cf. I. 3. I 1 5.
226. hic simul, etc.: the con-
duct of the spendfhrift is essentially
the same as if he actually did what
he is described as doing; hence this
description is inserted immediately
without explanation, as if it were
literally true.
227. edicit, maÂes proclamation;
a formal word of official action. —
piscator, etc.: suppliers of dainties
for the table.
228. unguentarius: the dealer
in perfumes. — Tusci: the Vicus
Tuscus, the street leading from the
Eorum between the Basilica Julia
and the Temple of Castor, to the
low ground between the Forum and
the river, was the haunt of strum-
pets, pimps, and worthless charac-
ters generally.
229. scurris: the parasites who
afforded amusement by their buf-
foonery to the gay young men about
town, and were in consequence en-
tertained by them. — fartor, zhe
sausage-maker. — Velabro, in the
same region as the Forum Boarium
near the river, mentioned here as a
market place for viands.
23o. veniant: depending on edi-
cit.
23I. verba facit: έ,e, is the
114 HORATI SERMONES,
[LIB. II.
cuique domi est, id crede tuum, et vel nunc pete vel cras.'
Accipe quid contra iuvenis responderit aequus :
* In nive Lucana dormis ocreatus, ut aprum
cenem ego ; tu piscis hiberno ex aequore verris; 235
segnis ego, indignus qui tantum possideam : aufer!
sume tibi decies ; tibi tantundem ; tibi triplex,
unde uxor media currit de nocte vocata.'
Filius Aesopi detractam ex aure Metellae,
scilicet ut decies solidum absorberet, aceto 24O
diluit insignem bacam : qui sanior ac si •
illud idem in rapidum flumen iaceretve cloacam ?
Quinti progenies Arri, par nobile fratrum,
nequitia et nugis pravorum et amore gemellum,
luscinias soliti impenso prandere coemptas, 245
quorsum abeant ?
spokesmam for all the crowd who
minister to the wants of the spend-
thrift. All they have is at his ser-
vice, either at once or whenever he
likes,
233. aequus, honest, not wish-
ing to take without payment, nor
without appreciation of their ser-
vices.
234. nive . . . ocreatus : to in-
dicate the difficulties of the pursuit.
— Lucana, the mountains of Luca-
nia, the haunts of the wild boar. —
ocreatus, imo /322/2??ng boozs ; prop-
erly leather leggings, an important
part of the huntsman's costume,
and naturally uncomfortable to sleep
1I1.
235. tu : another of the caterers,
the fishmonger. — hiberno: and
hence stormy and dangerous. — ver-
ris, scour, as with a net.
236. segnis, a lazy fellow, who
incur none of these hardships.
237. tibi: the hunter. — decies :
sc. centena milia, a mil/ion ses-
Sanin' creta, an carbone notandi ?
terces, forty to fifty thousand doI-
lars. — tibi: the fisherman.
238. unde, zwhose, lit. from whom,
equal a quo, the obliging husband.
239. Aesopi, a famous actor of
Cicero's time. — Metellae, doubt-
less his paramour, perhaps the wife
of Cornelius Lentulus Spinther.
24o. . solidum, at a draught, lit.
in a lump.
24I. ac si, tham ìf, as often.
242. in rapidum, etc. : which
would be a sign of insanity. — clo-
acam : cf. barathro, v. I66.
243. Arri, probably the same one
mentioned in v. 86.
245. impenso, at an enormous
price.
246. quorsum, à me zv/.ic/. grozzp,
£.e. to the sane or the insane. —
creta, an carbone, aS good or bad,
a figure derived from notation in
the calendar of lucky and unlucky
days, but possibly also connected
with some commercial custom. —
carbone : i.e. ut insani.
III. 232—26o.]
IHORATI SERMONES. 115.
Aedificare casas, plostello adiungere mures,
ludere par impar, equitare in arundine longa,
si quem delectet barbatum, amentia verset.
Si puerilius his ratio esse evincet amare, 25O.
nec quicquam differre utrumne in pulvere, trimus
quale prius, ludas opus, an meretricis amore
sollicitus plores, quaero, faciasne quod olim
mutatus Polemon, ponas insignia morbi,
fasciolas, cubital, focalia, potus ut ille - 255
dicitur ex collo furtim carpsisse coronas,
postquam est impransi correptus voce magistri ?
Porrigis irato puero cum poma, recusat:
* Sume, catelle ! * negat ; si non des, optet: amator
exclusus qui distat, agit ubi secum eat an non, 26o
247. casas, card /iouses. — plos-
tello, a toy cart.
248. par impar, oda, amd' evem ;
a boy's game, as with us. — equi-
tare, ride a cocÄ/ìorse.
249. barbatum, a beardea' mam,
full-grown. — verset, zwould com-
Zro/ /ii//z ; i.e. such childish conduct
would be a sure sign of insanity.
25o. puerilius his, etc.: i.e. the
conduct of a lover is more childish
than the acts mentioned. — amare :
in a bad sense, imtrígue.
25 I. pulvere : î. e. making mud
ples.
252. opus: cog. acc. with ludas,
zvasze yozur time ; lit. make serious
work of play, almost equal to p/ay
az zwo7rÀ.
253. plores: as the especial mark
of childishness. — faciasne, zvou/d-
7z'z yoz do like Polemo, i.e. feel that
you had reason to reform, thus ad-
mitting your former insanity, as he
did when shown the better way by
the voice of philosophy.
254. mutatus, the converted. —
Polemo, a fast young man of Ath-
ens, who happening in, when return-
ing from a drinking-bout with his
garland on, to a discourse of Xeno-
crates, leader ofthe Academic school,
became ashamed of his condition
(furtim carpsisse, etc.), reformed,
and succeeded Xenocrates as the
leader of the school. — insignia,
symptoms. — morbi: as a form of
insanity. 3'
255. fasciolas, /eg-zwrappings.
these and the following are the
coddling apparel of an effeminate
voluptuary. — cubital, ar//z/ets. — .
focalia, mecÂc/o//s. — potus, revel-
/er, one who has well drunken.
257. impransi: ?.e. Sober; op-
posed to potus.
258. porrigis, etc.: the childish-
ness of the lover is still further illus-
trated by showing that the lover
desires when he cannot obtain, and
refuses when he is invited, as in the
case in Terence's Eum ucλzus, when
Phædria uses the words quoted in
v. 262, in reference to his mistress,
who has sent for him.
259. catelle, little rat.
26o. qui : adverb. — agit: with
i, an unexplained irregularity, per-
116 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
quo rediturus erat non arcessitus, et haeret
invisis foribus ?
* Nec nunc, cum me vocat ultro,
accedam, an potius mediter finire dolores ?
Exclusit; revocat: redeam ?
INon, si obsecret.' Ecce
servus, non paulo sapientior: “ O ere, quae res 265
nec modum habet neque consilium, ratione modoque
tractari non volt.
In amore haec sunt mala, bellum,
pax rursum : haec si quis tempestatis prope ritu
mobilia et caeca fluitantia sorte laboret
reddere certa sibi, nihilo plus explicet ac si 27o
insanire paret certa ratione modoque.'
Quid ? cum, Picenis excerpens semina pomis,
gaudes si cameram percusti forte, penes te es ?
Quid ? cum balba feris annoso verba palato,
aedificante casas qui sanior ?
stultitiae, atque ignem gladio scrutare.
Adde cruorem 275
Modo, inquam,
Hellade percussa Marius cum praecipitat se,
cerritus fuit ? An commotae crimine mentis
absolves hominem, et sceleris damnabis eundem,
ex more imponens cognata vocabula rebus ? g8o
haps a mistaken extension of cases
like condiderit, II. I. 82.
261. non arcessitus: cf. si non
des optet, v. 259.
' 265. servus, Parmeno, Phædria's
slave. — quae res: ì.e. love ; the
whole showing the irrationality and
consequent insanity of the passion.
268. tempestatis, etc.: î. e. al-
most as changeable as the weather.
269. fluitantia, dríftimg.
272. cum Picenis, etc.: another
childish act, Snapping apple-seeds,
a process by which lovers sought
omens in regard to their love. —
Picenis: cf. II. 4. 7o.
274. cum balba, etc.: the lisp-
ing accents of love are compared to
the baby-talk of childhood.
275. cruorem : in reference to
the acts of violence often inspired
by love ; i.e. suppose these to exist
also, and the insafiity is still more
obvious.
276. ignem, etc.: the same idea,
but alluding to a dictum of Pythag-
oras, trìp μαχαίρα μὰ σκαλeÜeiv, the
meaning of which is not clear, per-
haps, ** excite not the wrathful to
violence,'' which dictum Horace
twists into this meaning. — modo:
?.e. take, I say, an example that
happened only just now, of the kind
referred to.
277. Hellade, a woman other-
wise unknown. •
28o. cognata, Åima?red', i.e. not
the true philosophical ones,
III. 261—295.]
HORATI SERMONES. 117
Libertinus erat, qui circum compita siccus
lautis mane senex manibus currebat et * Unum '
(* Quid tam magnum ?' addens), “unum me surpite morti,
dis etenim facile est ! ' orabat ; sanus utrisque
auribus atque oculis ; mentem, nisi litigiosus, 285
exciperet dominus cum venderet. Hoc quoque volgus
Chrysippus ponit fecunda in gente Meneni.
* Iuppiter, ingentis qui das adimisque dolores,'
mater ait pueri mensis iam quinque cubantis,
* frigida si puerum quartana reliquerit, illo 29O
mane die, quo tu indicis ieiunia, nudus
in Tiberi stabit.'
Casus medicusve levarit
aegrum ex praecipiti: mater delira necabit
in gelida fixum ripa febrimque reducet,
quone malo mentem concussa ? Timore deorum. 295
28 I. 1ibertinus, etc. : an example
of superstition, the fourth subject. —
compita: where were the shrines
of the Lares. — siccus, fasting.
282. lautis manibus : a custom
of the Jews, as well as many other
nations, in religious observance. —
senex, ìm his o/a age, when the fear
of death would most affect him. —
unum, me, fusè one man.
283. surpite : for surripite. —
quid tam magnum : a common
suggestion in prayers (cf. Theognis,
XIV., and Oays. V. 25), as again in
dis, etc.
284. sanus : in possession of all
his senses, but disordered in intel-
lect. -
285. nisi litigiosus, zzmless /ie
wamted a lazvsaziz, which would be
brought against him by the pur-
chaser of the slave, for breach of
warranty of soundness.
286. exciperet, zwould haz/e spe-
cially stated (if he had wanted to
sell him), which was necessary
to avoid liability. — dominus, his
master, inasmuch as he was once a
slave. — volgus: in allusion to their
great number.
287. Chrysippus: as leader of
the Stoics (cf. I. 3. I 27, and II. 3.
44). — Meneni, an unknown mad-
man.
288. Iuppiter: used as a name of
the Supreme Being, in association
with Thursday, by the womam, per-
haps a Jewess, or one who had
adopted the rites of that nation
referred to. The fast and the plac-
ing in the Tiber (baptism?) are
both Oriental. -
29I. die, Thursday, dies %ovìs.
— ieiunia: the Jews fasted on
Thursday, as well as Monday.
292. casus medicusve : ex-
pressly excluding the god from any
share in it. — 1evarit: hortatory ;
suppose, etc.
293. necabit: by performing the
VOW.
295. quone : cf. uterne, II. 2.
IO7 ; quine, I. Io. 2I ; so utrum-
ne, V. 25 I. • . '
11S HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
Haec mihi Stertinius, sapientum octavus, amico
arma dedit, posthac ne compellarer inultus.
Dixerit insanum qui me, totidem audiet, atque
respicere ignoto discet pendentia tergo.
Hor. Stoice, post damnum sic vendas omnia pluris, 3oo
qua me stultitia, quoniam non est genus unum,
insanire putas ?
Ego nam videor mihi sanus.
Dam. Quid? caput abscissum manibus cum portat Agave
gnati infelicis, sibi tum furiosa videtur ?
Horat. Stultum me fateor (liceat concedere veris), 3o5
atque etiam insanum ; tantum hoc edissere, quo me
aegrotare putes animi vitio ?
Dam. Accipe : primum
aedificas, hoc est, longos imitaris, ab imo
ad summum totus moduli bipedalis ; et idem
corpore maiorem rides Turbonis in armis 3IO
spiritum et incessum : qui ridiculus minus illo ?
An quodcumque facit Maecenas, te quoque verum est,
296. amico, as a fráend.
297. arma, zweapomos to defend
myself with, i.e. these precepts. —
compellarer, i.e. called madman.
299. pendentia: alluding to the
fable of the two sacks, one contain-
ing the faults of others, and hanging
in front, the other containing one's
own and hanging behind.
3oO. Stoice, etc.: to give a more
humorous close, and to include him-
self in the persons satirized, Horace
appeals to the Stoic to give his
diagnosis. — sic: the regular for-
mula in adjurations ; so, as you
grant my request, i.e. on condition
that. Cf. ** So may each airy moon-
elf and fairy,” etc. T. Moore. **Tell
me, kind seer.” — pluris : ì.e. than
before, so as to recover from his
embarrassments.
3o3. quid, etc.: in answer to
Horace's statement, that he is not
couscious of any insanity, Dama-
sippus refers to the case of Agave,
mother of Pentheus, familiar doubt-
less on the stage (hence videtur),
implying that a raving maniac even
has no knowledge of his condition.
3o5. Horace jocosely assents to
the Stoic's statement. — liceat: ì.e.
let it be no shame to be convinced.
3o6. edissere, state ful/y, dis-
course at large.
3o7. aegrotare : in the Stoic
manner, as morbus and the like.
3o8. longos, zhe great, but with
reference to Horace's small stature.
309. idem, at the same time ;
showing his inconsistency.
3Io. corpore maiorem, foo grea?
for, etc. — Turbonis, a gladiator
of small size.
312. verum, right.
III. 296-326, IV. I.]
HORATI SERMONES. H 19
tantum dissimilem, et tanto certare minorem ?
Absentis ranae pullis vituli pede pressis,
unus ubi effugit, matri denarrat, ut ingens 3I5
belua cognatos eliserit.
Illa rogare:
* Quantane, num tantum,' sufflans se, * magna fuisset ?'
* Maior dimidio.'
* Num tantum ? '
Cum magis atque
se magis inflaret, * Non, si te ruperis,' inquit,
* par eris.'
Haec a te non multum abludit imago. 32o
Adde poemata nunc, hoc est, oleum adde camino ;
quae si quis sanus fecit, sanus facis et tu.
Non dico horrendam
Dam. Cultum
rabiem — Hor. Iam desine !
maiorem censu — Hor. Teneas, Damasippe, tuis te.
Dam. Mille puellarum, puerorum mille furores — 325
O maior tandem parcas, insane, minori!
IV.
Hor. Unde et quo Catius ? Caz. Non est mihi tempus aventi
314. absentis, etc.: the fable of
the frog and the ox.
3I7. quantane: cf. quone, v. 295.
32o. non multum abludit, /. izs
moz very far ; a metaphor probably
derived from fencing ; cf. eludo.
32I. poemata: doubtless epodes
or odes. — oleum, etc.: a proverb-
ial expression, doubtless meaning
that the ebullition of insanity in
poetry (cf. next verse) makes it
WOrSe.
322. si quis, etc. : according to
the idea of the ancients that the
poet was inspired, and so frehzied ;
cf. vates.
323. rabiem : a stricture which,
as probably did the others, came
very near the truth, plainly in ac-
cordance with the spirit of Horace's
satire, including the poet himself
among the rest. — iam desine :
Horace represents l1i11iself as angry
at the closeness of the Stoic's hits.
— cultum, style of /iving.
326. maior . . . insane : Hor-
ace's impatience rises to its height,
and he closes with an outburst which
includes even the preaching Stoic
in the category of the crazy fools.
SATIRE 4. In this Satire Hor-
ace ridicules the epicures, who at-
tach so much importance to trifling
matters in everything that pertains
to the table. He puts the Satire
into the form of a dialogue between
himself and a certain epicure,
Catius, who has just heard a dis-
course on these matters from some
noted master in the art, who is not
named, and who now gives them
second-hand to Horace, with all the
form and importance of philosoph-
ical dogmas.
I. unde et quo Catius: a com-
120
[LIB. II.
· HORATI SERMONES,
ponere signa novis praeceptis, qualia vincant
Pythagoran Anytique reum doctumque Platona.
Hor. Peccatum fateor, cum te sic tempore laevo
interpellarim ; sed des veniam bonus, oro. 5
Quod si interciderit tibi nunc aliquid, repetes mox,
sive est naturae hoc sive artis, mirus utroque.
Cat. Quin id erat curae, quo pacto cuncta tenerem,
utpote res tenuis, tenui sermone peractas.
Hor. Ede hominis nomen, simul et Romanus an hospes.
Cat. Ipsa memor praecepta canam, celabitur auctor. II
* Longa quibus facies ovis erit, illa memento,
ut suci melioris et ut magis alba rotundis,
ponere ; namque marem cohibent callosa vitellum.
Cole suburbano qui siccis crevit in agris I5
dulcior ; irriguo nihil est elutius horto.
mon form of salutation ; cf. I. 9. 62
and 63. — tempus: ì.e. tO stop and
talk.
2. ponere signa: a formal ex-
pression for consignare literis,
commiz to zvrizimg, set dozam, recora.
There is no certain reference to the
mnemonic art, though such a refer-
ence is possible. — praeceptis : the
regular word for philosophical doc-
trines.
3. Anyti, the accuser of Socrates.
4. laevo, zzm favorable ; from the
language of augury.
5. bonus, Âánd/y.
6. quod si, ama' (as to that) ìf.
— repetes, zwi// reca//.
7. sive, etc.: i.e. so good is your
memory, either naturally, or from
practice in the art.
8. quin id, etc. : zv/.y, ἐλaz was
7r2y amaezezy, etc.; in allusion to Hor-
ace's supposition of his forgetting
something, especially as the matters
are so subtle and so subtly expressed.
The doctrines are treated like the
profoundest discoveries in philoso-
phy.
Io. hominis: the author.
I I. ipsa: the name is purposely
concealed, most probably because
he is a man of too Inuchi conse-
quence to be ridiculed. — memor:
i.e. exactly, with a good memory. *
I 2. 1onga, etc.: the precious doc-
trines begin at once without further
preamble, and in a rambling style, as
they happen to come up in his mind.
I3. suci, £aste.
I4. ponere, zo serve ; the regu-
lar word. Cf. posito, II. 2. 23. —
namque : the reason of the better
taste. — callosa, o/ firm texture.
I 5. cole: the popular form of
caule. — suburbano : î. e. grown
in the well-watered market-gardens
around the city. — siccis: the farms
in the country.
I6. elutius, more imsipid ; of
course referring to the productions
of the garden, but with an allusion
to the constant watering.
IV. 2-34.]
HORATI SERMONES. 121
Si vespertinus subito te oppresserit hospes,
ne gallina malum responset dura palato,
doctus eris vivam mixto mersare Talerno ;
hoc teneram faciet. Pratensibus optima fungis 2O
natura est; aliis male creditur.
Ille salubris
aestates peraget, qui nigris prandia moris
finiet, ante gravem quae legerit arbore solem.
Aufidius forti miscebat mella Falerno,
mendose, quoniam vacuis committere venis 25
nil nisi lene decet; leni praecordia mulso
prolueris melius.
Si dura morabitur alvus,
mitulus et viles pellent obstantia conchae
et lapathi brevis herba, sed albo non sine Coo.
Lubrica nascentes implent conchylia lunae ; 3o
sed non omne mare est generosae fertile testae ;
murice Baiano melior Lucrina peloris,
ostrea Circeiis, Miseno oriuntur echini,
pectinibus patulis iactat se molle Tarentum.
I7. si vespertinus, etc.: i.e. in
case it is necessary to serve a fowl
freshly killed, on account of the
sudden arrival of an unexpected
guest.
18. malum : the neuter adverb-
ial accusative — responset, suit, as
answering the demands of the pal-
ate. — dura, zough.
I9. doctus eris, you zwi// be zwise
zo, etc. ; lit. you will be taught to. —
mixto : with water, a'iZuzea.
2o. pratensibus, ofz/ae meadows,
as opposed to the woods.
2I. male creditur, are moz to ôe
aruszed, as likely to be poisonous.
22. prandia, déjeumer, or /umc/.,
the first real meal of the day, taken
about noon.
24. Aufidius, an unknown epi-
cure. — miscebat : ì.e. for mau/-
sum, which was taken at the begin-
ning of a meal for an appetizer,
hence vacuis.
29. brevis, sma//-/eaz/ed'. — alba
. . . Coo, wime of Cos mixed with
sea water (Aevicöicovov), in which
apparently the shell-fish and sorrel
vwere boiled.
3o. lubrica: on account of their
slipping down the throat easily. —
nascentes, etc.: the new moon is
the best time for taking shell-fish,
and the different localities vary in
the excellence of the fish.
3 I. generosae, the cλοῖces?; used
regularly of fine breeds of animals.
32. murice, a turbinate shell-
fish or cockle, of which many kinds
are eaten in Italy. — peloris, a bi-
valve.
33. Miseno, on the promontory
of Misenum ; cf. Virg. Æ. VI. 234.
34. pectinibus, the long comb-
122 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
* Nec sibi cenarum quivis temere arroget artem, 35
non prius exacta tenui ratione saporum ;
nec satis est cara piscis averrere mensa
ignarum quibus est ius aptius et quibus assis
languidus in cubitum iam se conviva reponet.
Umber et iligna nutritus glande rotundas 4O
curvat aper lances carnem vitantis inertem ;
nam Laurens malus est, ulvis et arundine pinguis.
Vinea submittit capreas non semper edulis.
Fecundae leporis sapiens sectabitur armos.
Piscibus atque avibus quae natura et foret aetas, 45.
antc mcum nulli patuit quaesita palatum.
Sunt quorum ingenium nova tantum crustula promit.
Nequaquam satis in re una consumere curam,
like bivalve, ** razor-blade(?).'' —
patulis, gapimg, ì.e. bivalve.
35. quivis, everybody. — temere,
zgnorant?y, without a thorough un-
derstanding of the micer points of
cookery. — artem : i.e. of prepar-
ing ; used of the cook.
36. non prius, etc., zwithout hav-
?//g, etc. — exacta, zweighed ; cf. ex-
amen. — tenui, subz/e, as in v. 9. —
saporum, of /?avorimg amd sauces.
— ratione, a7rz. The mere choice
of viands such as he has described
is not enough, without the art of
preparing them.
37. cara, cosf?y. — averrere,
sweep off, i.e. monopolize the whole
stock of dainties. — mensa: in the
market.
38. ignarum : taking the place
of the indefinite subject of averrere.
— ius : ì.e. in which they are
boiled. — assis, roastea'.
39. in cubitum : in reference to
the reclining position in which the
ancients took their meals, meaning,
of course, to beguile the guest to
begin again.
4I. curvat, bemds(with its weight).
— aper: cf. II. 8. 6. — vitantis, ì.e.
if one wishes to avoid, or prefers
the opposite. — inertem, tasteless,
jnsipid.
42. malus, poo7r, Zworzh/ess.
43. submittit, supp/ies. — non
semper: i.e. those in the woods
are to be preferred.
44. fecundae : the main idea,
these in preference to any others. —
armos: specified merely because
that is the part eaten. — sapiens,
zÀe comzmzoisseu7r.
45. natura: i. e. what kind in
each case was best for the table. —
aetas : the age at which they should
be served. -
46. meum : to be referred to the
unknown epicure. — patuit, λas
όeemz fuá?y Âmozwm. — quaesita: ?.e.
though much studied.
47. crustula, szweets, cakes and
the like. — promit, imvemts ; i.e.
they content themselves with in-
venting dainties for dessert.
48. nequaquam satis : i.e. this
is a very narrow scope for the true
artist, to devote himself to one
branch alone.
IV. 35—66.]
123
EHORATI SERMONES.
ut si quis solum hoc, mala ne sint vina, laboret,
quali perfundat piscis securus olivo. 5O
Massica si caelo supponas vina scrcno,
nocturna, si quid crassi est, tenuabitur aura,
et decedet odor nervis inimicus ; at illa
integrum perdunt lino vitiata saporem.
Surrentina vafer qui miscet faece Falerna 55
vina, columbino limum bene colligit ovo,
quatenus ima petit volvens aliena vitellus.
Tostis marcentem squillis recreabis et Afra
potorem cochlea : nam lactuca innatat acri
post vinum stomacho ; perna magis ac magis hillis 6o
flagitat immorsus refici ; quin omnia malit,
quaecumque immundis fervent allata popinis.
Est operae pretium duplicis pernoscere iuris
naturam. Simplex e dulci constat olivo,
quod pingui miscere mero muriaque decebit, 65
non alia quam qua Byzantia putuit Orca.
5o. securus, careless, mot carimg.
5 I. supponas: i.e. expose to the.
night air under a clear sky.
52. si quid crassi, ìf iz is at
al? ?/aicâ or muda y. — tenuabitur,
zwi// be refimed.
53. odor, the bouquet.
54. integrum, pure ; opposed
to perdunt. — lino : î. e. they are
spoiled by straining or filtering.
55. faece : the deposit, or lees,
ofwine was burnt, and used to flavor
wine, and forother flavors; cf. II. 8. 9.
56. 1imum colligit, i.e. clarifies
the wine.
57. quatenus, simce ; cf. I. I. 64.
—volvens, gatherimg. — aliena, al/
foreign matters.
58. marcentem, i.e. who has
lost his appetite from excess ofwine.
— squillis, probably a shell-fish. —
Afra: these seem to have been fa-
mous as the best.
59. innatat, does mot digest,
swims in the full stomach.
6o. perna: means of immorsus.
— magis, rather.
6I. immorsus, stim ulated, prop-
erly gnazwed. — omnia: ì.e. rather
than lettuce.
62. popinis, the low taverns or
restaurants. — allata, serveâ ; i.e.
the rich strong food of the common
people in their low resorts.
63. est operae pretium : a pur-
posely chosen epic phrase from En-
nius, to give pomposity to the style.
— duplicis: a technical name, no
doubt, for this sauce made of the
ordinary sauce treated as described.
65. muria, fis/, - brime, or the
pickle in which fish has been pre-
served, was a favorite ingredient in
the sauces or relishes of the ancients.
66. Byzantia: referring to the
tunny fish of Byzantium, which was
124 HORATI SERMONES,
[LIB. II.
Hoc ubi confusum sectis inferbuit herbis
Corycioque croco sparsum stetit, insuper addes
pressa Venafranae quod baca remisit olivae.
Picenis cedunt pomis Tiburtia suco; 7o
nam facie praestant.
Venucula convenit ollis ;
rectius Albanam fumo duraveris uvam.
Hanc ego cum malis, ego faecem primus et allec,
primus et invenior piper album cum sale nigro
incretum puris circumposuisse catillis. 75
Immane est vitium dare milia terna macello
angustoque vagos piscis urgere catino.
Magna movet stomacho fastidia, seu puer unctis
tractavit calicem manibus, dum furta ligurrit,
sive gravis veteri craterae limus adhaesit. 8o
a great article of export ; see Plin.
A7. AV. IX. 2O. — putuit: a not um-
natural expression for the raw mate-
rial, whatever the product.
67. hoc: the ius simplex. —
inferbuit, Aeas òeemo δοῖ/ed.
68. stetit, has been left to cool.
69. remisit: έ.e. the ** pomace ”
of the olive after the oil has been
extracted.
7I. nam, i.e. I say this, because,
etc. — venucula: sc. uva. — con-
venit ollis, is suitab/e for pacÂimg,
storing away to eat fresh, as op-
posed to the raisins mentioned in
the next verse. Cf. Plin. Æ. Λ/.
XIV. I6.
73. hanc : î. e. grapes ; the dis-
covery consists in the combination,
like ** nuts and raisins.” — ego fae-
cem, etc.: the novelty apparently
consisted in serving these relishes
in a separate dish, and in precisely
this mixture. — faecem : cf. II. 8.
9. — allec, a sauce prepared from
various marine animals, like anchovy
Sauce, Or caviare.
74. invenior: a poetic extension
«*
:
„0
« ò • &
2
, e , • ?
(0
§
3
ę
ę
&
ę
gy
:
s.
•
<•
©
í
:
of the construction of dicor and
the like. — piper, etc.: another
combination of condiments. — sale
nigro: made of wood ashes, like
** pearlash.”
75. puris : i.e. in separate clean
plates, without any other viands.
76. immane, etc.: the mention
of the setting things on the table
suggests to the man the importance
of the style of service, etc. — dare,
etc.: i.e. spend an enormous sum
for the fish, and then spoil the effect
in the serving.
77. angustoque, etc.: the fault
consists in having too small a
plate. This, however, the connois-
seur speaks of as confining the fish,
which are accustomed to freedom,
in too narrow limits.
78. magna, etc.: other details
of the service.
79. furta, stolem daimties ; the
slave is represented as hastilysmatch-
ing something from the dish with
his fingers, and greasing the cups
while handing them, in consequence.
8o. gravis, etc.: the sediment re-
IV. 67—95.]
HORATI SERMONES. 125
Vilibus in scopis, in mappis, in scobe quantus
consistit sumptus ?
Neglectis, flagitium ingens.
Ten' lapides varios lutulenta radere palma
et Tyrias dare circum inluta toralia vestis,
oblitum, quanto curam sumptumque minorem 85
haec habeant, tanto reprehendi iustius illis
quae nisi divitibus nequeant contingere mensis ?'
Horat. Docte Cati, per amicitiam divosque rogatus,
ducere me auditum, perges quocumque, memento.
Nam quamvis memori referas mihi pectore cuncta, go
non tamen interpres tantundem iuveris.
Adde
voltum habitumque hominis, quem tu vidisse beatus
non magni pendis, quia contigit ; at mihi cura
non mediocris inest, fontis ut adire remotos
atque haurire queam vitae praecepta beatae. 95
maining in the mixing-jar from long
use and neglect in cleansing.
81. vilibus, etc. : î. e. what a
fault is uncleanliness, when the
means of cleansing are so cheap.
83. ten : the short colloquial form
for te-ne. — varios, variegatea,
and so costly. — 1utulenta: indi-
cating carelessness in attending to
the costly pavement so that the
effect is lost. — radere : with ten
in the infinitive of exclamation, the
jdea ?/iaz, zo //;imâ f/.az.
84. Tyrias: the most costly cov-
erings of the couches. —toralia, the
** valance,” around the feet of the
couch. — vestis, after circum.
86. haec: these details of ser-
vice, depending merely on cleanli-
mess. — illis : the splendid pave-
ments and couch-coverings.
87. divitibus, i.e. of the rich.
88. docte, etc. : Horace, as if
impressed with the importance of
the doctrines, begs Catius to take
him with him whenever he goes to
hear such valuable truths.
9I. interpres, a reporter, giving
the things at second hand. — adde,
comsider also, i.e. think what an
advantage there would be to me in
seeing the man's face and bearing
when giving these great truths.
95. vitae praecepta beatae : ì.e.
in a double sense : on the one hand,
of moral precepts such as secured a
happy life, the aim of all the later
philosophies: and on the other, of
the advantages that come from at-
tention to the rules of good living
in the epicure's sense. The whole
close is probably parodied from
Lueae. I. 927, iuvat imtegros accedere
fomtis, atque haurire, etc. •
126
[LIB. II.
HORATI SERMONES.
{V/zates. Hoc quoque, Tiresia, praeter narrata petenti
responde, quibus amissas reparare queam res
artibus atque modis.
Quid rides ?
7Ti7r. Iamne doloso
non satis est Ithacam revehi patriosque penatis
aspicere ?
U/iae. O nulli quicquam mentite, vides ut 5
nudus inopsque domum redeam, te vate ; neque illic
aut apotheca procis intacta est aut pecus ; atqui
et genus et virtus, nisi cum re, vilior alga est.
7Îr. Quando pauperiem, missis ambagibus, horres,
accipe qua ratione queas ditescere.
SATIRE 5. There was at Rome
at the beginning of the Empire, in
consequence of the disorganization
of society and the ease with which '
fortunes had been acquired in the
civil war, * a large number of rich
men and women for whom family
ties did not exist or were held in
little esteem. To ingratiate them-
selves into the favor of persons of
this class, and secure a rich inheri-
tance, became almost a profession
followed by many adventurers. It
is against this practice that Horace
directs this satire, in which he de-
scribes ironically the methods to be
pursued by the legacy hunter, appar-
ently as ifthey were perfectly legiti-
mate, and thus shows their contempt-
ible meanness. The directions are
put into the mouth of Tiresias and
addressed to Ulysses at the end of
the interview in the world below
(Hom. Odys. XI. I48), in which
Ulysses is assured by the seer of a
safe return, but only after losing
all his possessions. The satiré has
thus the form of a travesty.
I. narrata: the statements of the
seer related in Od. XI. 9o.
3. rides: the seer smiles at the
Turdus IO
greed of mankind as shown by Ulys-
ses, who is not satisfied with escap-
ing with his life, but being assured
of that, at once wishes to get rich
again. — iam, a/ready, when he is
assured of his life. — doloso: rep-
resenting the standing epithets of
Ulysses (τολύτροτοs, etc.), but at the
same time suggesting his character
as illustrated by his conduct here.
6. te vate, accordimg zo your
prophecy.
7. apotheca : containing his
stores of grain, wine, and oil. —
procis : the suitors of Penelope, who
lived as her guests in the house of
her husband while awaiting her de-
cision. (See Hom. Odys. I. IO6 ez
seq.). — pecus: both as means of
subsistence, and as constituting a
great part of the wealth of a barbaric
chief. — atqui: the adversative turn
in the thought depends on an idea
not expressed; ** I have birth and
worth, tobe sure; yetthey are worth-
less without money.”
9. ambagibus : i.e. the excuse he
makes in et genus et virtus, etc.
Io. turdus : a delicacy for the
table.
v. 1—23.]
127 ``
HORATI SERMONES.
sive aliud privum dabitur tibi, devolet illuc
res ubi magna nitet domino sene ; dulcia poma
et quoscumque feret cultus tibi fundus honores,
ante larem gustet venerabilior lare dives ;
qui quamvis periurus erit, sine gente, cruentus I5
sanguine fraterno, fugitivus, ne tamen illi
tu comes exterior, si postulet, ire recuses.
Ü7ìae. Utne tegam spurco Damae latus ? Haud ita Troiae
me gessi, certans semper melioribus.
U7jv. Fortem hoc animum tolerare iu-
pauper eris.
bebo ;
et quondam maiora tuli.
7ir. Ergo
2O
Tu protinus, unde
divitias aerisque ruam dic, augur, acervos.
7ir. Dixi equidem et dico : captes astutus ubique
I I. privum, rare, not possessed
by everybody. — devolet: chosen
on account of the thrush.
I 2. nitet, /?ourìs/ies ; the figure
no doubt derived from animals and
lands which are well kept.
I 3. honores: cf. ruris homorum,
Carm. I. I7. 16.
I4. ante larem : the first fruits
were offered to the household god.
Cf.
pomiferi laribus consuevimus horti
Mittere primitias.
Calp. Ecl. II. 64.
I 5. sine gente : a freedman, as
Once having been a slave, and so
fi/ius mullius.
I7. comes : one of the principal
functions of a humble dependent
was to escort his superior where-
ever he appeared abroad. Cf. I. 6.
IOI and I I 2. — exterior, om zhe
Ze/? /èama', where the more humble
companiom would go. Cf. Suet.
C/aud. 24; Eutrop. VII. I 3; see also
tegam latus, meaning the same
thing.
I8, utne tegam, the idea o/, etc.
— Damae : a common slave's name.
The little struggle of the hero gives
the more force to his very speedy
submission.
I 9. melioribus : dative, as in
Greek. — ergo pauper eris, f/ìem
3/o/z'// /ave zo öe, etc., in a Laconic
style, showing the necessity of this
degradation. To which Ulysses re-
plies as it were, ** Oh well, if I must,
I will.??
2O. fortem hoc, etc.: the point
of this lies in the fact that his other
sufferings had contained no abase-
ment, while here the degradation is
self-imposed, though the words are
imitated from his expressions of
heroic fortitude. Cf. Odys. XX. I8,
and V. 224. — hoc: of course the
degradation, not the poverty.
22. ruam, dig up (like eruam),
as the earth is the source of the
precious metals.
23. dixi, etc. : with a little impa-
tience, as if he said, I told you be-
fore, that is the only way. Cf. the
abruptness of pauper eris.
128
[LIB. II.
HORATI SERMONES.
testamenta senum, neu, si vafer unus et alter
insidiatorem praeroso fugerit hamo, 25
aut spem deponas aut artem illusus omittas.
Magna minorve foro si res certabitur olim,
vivet uter locuples sine gnatis, improbus, ultro
qui meliorem audax vocet in ius, illius esto
defensor ; fama civem causaque priorem 3O
sperne, domi si gnatus erit fecundave coniunx.
* Quinte,' puta, aut * Publi' (gaudent praenomine molles
auriculae) * tibi me virtus tua fecit amicum ;
ius anceps novi, causas defendere possum ;
eripiet quivis oculos citius mihi, quam te 35
contemptum cassa nuce pauperet ; haec mea cura est,
ne quid tu perdas, neu sis iocus.'
Ire domum atque
pelliculam curare iube ; fi cognitor ipse.
Persta atque obdura, seu rubra Camicu/a fi//det
24. si vafer, etc.: ?.e. don't be
discouraged by any want of success.
25. praeroso, etc.: the figure of
course is of a fish stealing the bait,
and escaping uncaught. 3
27. magna, etc.: the Romans
went into court accompanied by one
or more friends (advocati), who
assisted them with advice and ser-
vices. Cf. I. 9. 38. This is one of
the services by which the will-hunter
can ingratiate himself with the rich.
— res: case. Cf. reus (orig. parzy).
28. ultro, etc.: i.e. take no ac-
count of the justice of the cause, but
be guided by the position of the
parties. •
32. Quinte, etc.: the use of the
prænomen denotes familiarity and
affection, in which the sensitive
nature, looked upon by the Romans
as a Weakness, of these men delight.
As childless old men they feel the
want of affection. — puta, with à, as
often in this sense, following the
popular prosody as in comedy.
34. ius anceps, the doubtful
poimts of/azv.
36. contemptum, cast comtempt
zupom, treating it as amother verb.
The contempt would consist in get-
ting the better of him in a lawsuit,
showing that he can be attacked
with impunity. Cf. sis iocus, v. 37.
38. pelliculam, λόs precious
hea///i ; a variation on cutis (cf. Æρ.
I. 2. 29), in the sense of coddling
one's self. No doubt the expression
is derived from the bathing and
anointing which the Romans made
great use of. — cognitor, his at/o7-
mey ; the person who appeared to
represent the party in court. The
advocate proper would be patromzzzs.
39. rubra, etc.: no doubt a quo-
tation made in jest from the poet
Furius. The whole is a comic ex-
pression for the extremes of hot
and cold weather. — Canicula : this
ought properly to be the constel-
lation of the Little Dog, Trpokúo, v
(cf. Od. III. 29. 18), but it prob-
V. 24—5 I.]
129
HORATI SERMONES.
infantis statuas, seu pingui tentus omaso 4O
Furius hibernas cana mive conspuet Alpis.
* Nonne vides,' aliquis cubito stantem prope tangens
inquit, * ut patiens ! ut amicis aptus ! ut acer !'
plures adnabunt thynni et cetaria crescent.
Si cui praeterea validus male filius in re 45
praeclara sublatus aletur, ne manifestum
caelibis obsequium nudet te, leniter in spem
adrepe officiosus, ut et scribare secundus
heres, et, si quis casus puerum egerit Orco,
in vacuum venias : perraro haec alea fallit. 5O
Qui testamentum tradet tibi cumque legendum,
ably refers to or is confused with
Sirius, whose rising,in earlier times
in Greece was the mark of the hot
S€3SOIl.
4o. infantis : literally, dumb. —
statuas: they are cracked by the
excessive drought, being ofwood. —
pingui: doubtless alluiding-to the
poetaster's personal appearance. —
Furius : cf. Sat. I. Io. 36.
Furius Bibaculus, whose nickname
Alpinus appears to have been de-
rived from this passage or a similar
one. He was a ridiculous poet of
Cremona.
42. stantem prope, λόs meighbor.
43. aptus, acco/////2odatâ mag,strictly,
adapted, 2. e. adapting himself to his
needs. Cf. Cic. ad AFam. XII. 3o,
O λοm imem semper iJ/um quidem
7n îhî aptum.
44. thynni: cf. v. 25. — cetaria,
fis/ pomds, probably arrangements
like modern weirs, but in which fish
were kept awaiting a demand, and
taken out as wanted, asis sometimes
done nowadays with fish sold forbait.
45. si cui, etc.: i.e. occasionally
as a blind the will-hunter should
be content with the second chance,
and pay court to a man who is not
absolutely childless, but has a son,
in case the son's health is poor.
46. sublatus, όorma, strictly, in
allusion to the custom of laying a
new-born child on the ground to be
taken up by the father (tollere) if
he wished it to be reared as his,
instead of being exposed and aban-
doned.
47. leniter, s/y?y ; i.e. by gentle
means, so as mot to be caught at it.
48. secundus : î. e. im z/ie secomd
p/ace, failing the first disposition of
the estate to the child, through his
death.
49. Orco: the common poetic
construction of the dative as end of
motion is more justifiable from the
fact that Orcus is properly a per-
son. Cf. *A%òv TpoïdtTTevv.
5 I. qui: with cumque. — legen-
dum : î. e. he either wishes, as a
mark of his confidence, to assure
his friend that he is remembered in
his will, or else to show that he is
not deceived by his friend's pre-
tended devotion. - -
130 HORATI SERMONES. [LIB. II.
abnuere et tabulas a te removere memento,
sic tamen, ut limis rapias, quid prima secundo
cera velit versu ; solus multisne coheres,
veloci percurre oculo. Plerumque recoctus 55
scriba ex quinqueviro corvum deludet hiantem,
captatorque dabit risus Nasica Corano.
U/iae. Num furis ? an prudens ludis me obscura canendo?
Tir. O Laertiade, quicquid dicam aut erit aut non : '
divinare etenim magnus mihi donat Apollo. 6o
U/iae. Quid tamen ista velit sibi fabula, si licet, ede.
Tir. Tempore quo iuvenis Parthis horrendus, ab alto
demissum genus Aenea, tellure marique
52. abnuere, etc.: to show the
disinterestedness of his devotion.
53. sic tamen, etc.: i.e. but do
not fail to assure yourself that you
are not taken in yourself. — prima
... cera: the first of the two tablets
on which such documents were writ-
ten. Cf. note on I. 6. 74. — se-
cundo . . . versu : the first line
would have the testator's name; the
second, the heir's.
55. plerumque, etc.: î. e. it very
often happens that the testator sees
through the wiles of the will-hunter
and finally eludes him. This idea,
however, is jocosely expressed by
reference to a single instance where
such a thing has happened. As the
incident has happened since the
time of Ulysses, the whole is put in
the form of a prophecy, keeping up
the form of the travesty, and produ-
cing a most comic effect. — recoc-
tus, boi/ed dozwm ; an allusion to the
story of Medea, which had become
almost proverbial. Cf. Cic. de Sem.
XXIII. 83.
56. scriba : cf. II. 6. 36. — quin-
queviro: apparently a kind of
policeman. Cf. Cic. Acad. II. 44.
I 36, though boards of five men for
several other purposes are men-
tiomed. At any rate, the office is
that of Some humble magistrate. —
corvum : an allusion to the fable
of the fox and the crow.
58. num furis : the use of the
pröper names, *unknown of course
to Ulysses, makes him doubt the
sanity of the seer. — prudens, pur-
posely, as opposed to furis.
59. O Laertiade : the seer replies
in effect that the allusion is a pro-
phetic one. — aut erit aut non :
this would naturally mean, will or
will not according as I say it will
or will not, but no doubt there is
a double meaning, with a jest at
divination.
6o. divinare : a poetic use of the
infinitive probably influenced by the
Greek. — donat: present because
the gift is a continued one.
6I. tamen : as if he said, ** yes,
but still I wish you would explain
what the story means.”
62. tempore, etc.: purposely put
in the heroic style. The time re-
ferred to is the establishment of
Augustus' power after the battle
of Actium.
63. demissum : cf. Virg. Æm. I.
288. — genus, a sciom, in appo-
sition with iuvenis. Cf. I. 6. I 2.
v. 52—76.]
HORATI SERMONES. 131
magnus erit, forti nubet procera Corano
filia Nasicae, metuentis reddere soldum. 65
Tum gener hoc faciet: tabulas socero dabit atque
ut legat orabit ; multum Nasica negatas
accipiet tandem et tacitus leget, invenietque
nil sibi legatum praeter plorare suisque.
Illud ad haec iubeo: mulier si forte dolosa 7o
libertusve senem delirum temperet, illis
accedas socius ; laudes, lauderis ut absens ;
adiuvat hoc quoque, sed vincit longe prius ipsum
expugnare caput,
Scribet mala carmina vecors :
laudato. Scöftator erit : cave te roget; ultro 75.
Penelopam facilis potiori trade.
64. forti: cf. II. I. 16, 3. 216. —
procera: corresponding to forti
and suggesting a fine figure. Both
are no doubt stock epithets for a
newly married pair, like ** gallant
bridegroom* and ** fair bride.”
65. Nasicae, etc.: the father-in-
law being indebted to the son-in-law,
has given him his daughter to secure
his favor. — metuentis: simply a
strong form for nolentis. — sol-
dum : i.e. solidum, the principal
Of the debt.
66. tabulas: as in v. 52.
69. legatum : a technical word.
Under the Roman law of wills it
was necessary that one Or more per-
sons should be /ieredes or direct
legatees who represented the estate
or succession, and any sum that they
were directed to pay was said to
be legatum ab eis. Here, however,
FIorace probably does not use the
word technically, but only in a gen-
eral sense, as English lef?. — plo-
rare: treated like a noum governed
by praeter. Itis used asin I. Io. 91,
equivalent to a curse. The whole
Ü7jae. Putasne ?
story shows comically how “ the
biter *' may sometimes be ** bit.”
7o. illud, etc. : other less direct
means of gaining favor. — mulier:
doubtless a freedwoman mistress.
72. socius: implying that they
are engaged in the same enterprise.
73. hoc : z.e. the scheme referred
to. — vincit, carries offz/ae pa/m, as
compared with the indirect means.
— longe prius, òy far the be//er
C0747^Sé.
74. caput, //ae main szromg/.o/a',
the old man himself. — scribet :
with the force of a condition. —
mala, zworz/a/ess (cf. II. I. 83). —
vecors : in Latin cor included the
intellectual as well as the moral pow-
ers, to which last we have limited
the heart later.
75. laudato : the second form of
the imperative used as often in a
general command. — roget: the ne
is omitted here as frequently else-
where.
76. potiori, your superior, more
worthy than you. — putasne : in
response to the idea implied in the
132
[LIB. II.
.]HORATI SERMONES.
perduci poterit tam frugi tamque pudica,
quam nequiere proci recto depellere cursu ?
7ir. Venit enim magnum donandi parca iuventus
nec tantum Veneris, quantum studiosa culinae. 8o
Sic tibi Penelope frugi est, quae si semel uno
de sene gustarit tecum partita lucellum,
ut canis a corio numquam absterrebitur uncto.
Me sene quod dicam factum est : anus improba Thebis
ex testámento sic est elata: cadaver 85
unctum oleo largo nudis umeris tulit heres,
scilicet elabi si posset mortua ; credo,
quod nimium institerat viventi.
Cautus adito,
neu desis operae, neve immoderatus abundes.
Difficilem et morosum offendet garrulus ultro ; 9O
preceding, and repeated in the fol-
lowing words.
77. frugi, virtuous, properly re-
ferring to her housewifely qualities
as opposed to luxury and wanton-
ness (cf. I. 3. 49 and 4. IO7).
78. proci: cf. Hom. Odys. I. IO6.
79. enim, o/. J/es, for.—-donandi:
cf. parcus aceti, II. 2. 62; and
cupidus te audiendi, Cic. de Or. II.
4. For the idea, cf.
Aυτοῖ τοί y' άττάyovorv ßöas και ίφια μῆλα.
Κοὐpms δαίτα φίλοισι, και άγλαά δόpa.
διδοῦσιν
'Aλλ' οὐκ άλλότριον βίοτον vjTouvov έδον-
orvv. — Homz. Odys. XVIII. 277.
8I. sic, £/.az's zw/.y, referring to
the circumstances just mentioned. —
uno : opposed to the number of the
suitors.
83. canis, etc.: proverbial, cf.
Xa\eTòv xopfao fcÜva yeυσαι. Here
is the usual identification of the
figure with the object. Cf. II. I. 2o.
84. me sene : a jocose expres-
sion in accordance with the dramatic
setting varied from me iuvene, and
the like. The anecdote shows the
necessity of caution in the pursuit
of this profession. — improba, ma-
/icáozus.
85. sic, in this fashiom, as fol-
lows. — elata: the technical word
for carrying to the grave.
86. tulit: the statement implies
(cf. ex testamento) that these were
the conditions of the will, which is
the real fact to be stated though it
is not directly set down.
87. scilicet, to see, mo doubt. —
posset: the so-called indirect ques-
tion with si. — mortua: í.e. since
she never had been able to get away
from him while alive, which is stated
indirectly in the next line.
88. cautus adito: as a kind
of conclusion -from the preceding,
followed by further amplification
of the same theme. — abundes: sc.
opera supplied from operae.
9o. difficilem et morosum : the
common characteristics of old men.
Cf. at sum? morosi et anxiâ et i^a-
cumdi et dìffìciles senes. Cic. de
v. 77—Io2.]
133
HORATI SERMONES.
non etiam sileas ; Davus sis comicus, atque
stes capite obstipo, multum similis metuenti.
Obsequio grassare ; mone, si increbuit aura,
cautus uti velet carum caput ; extrahe turba
oppositis umeris ; aurem substringe loquaci. 95
Importunus amat laudari ; donec * Ohe iam !'
ad caelum manibus sublatis dixerit, urge,
crescentem tumidis infla sermonibus utrem.
Cum te servitio longo curaque levarit,
et certum vigilans, QUARTAE SIT PARTIS ULIXES Ioo
audieris HEREs : * Ergo nunc Dama sodalis
nusquam est ? Unde mihi tam fortem tamque fidelem ?'
Sem. XVIII. 65. Evidently this
was thought to be their ordinary
character, though Cicero maintains
that this is not the fault of age. —
garrulus: an example of one qui
immoderatus abundat. — ultro,
7ra?/;er, z.e. instead of pleasing,
which he hopes to do, he will fail
to please, and will offend the old
man besides.
9 I. non : here not different from
ne, though doubtless the construc-
tion is of different origin, coming
from the potential use of the sub-
junctive. Cf. Æρ. I. I8. 72. — etiam,
eiz/ier, properly too. — Davus: a
stock name for slaves in the com-
edy. Cf. e.g. Ter. Amdria.
92. obstipo, hu/zö4y όowea', prop-
erly, slanting, bowed and turned to
One side. Cf. λο§6s, Theognis, 548.
— multum : apparently colloquial
in this sense. Cf. I. 3. 57, where
its connection with a participle is
more regular.
95. substringe, prick up, prop-
erly, zie zup.
96. importunus, spoilea' or ex-
aczing, in so far as he is inconsid-
erate of the claims of others, and
so is troublesome.
96. ohe iam : cf. I. 5. I2.
97. ad caelum, etc.: properly a
gesture of supplication to be deliv-
ered from the excess of flattery, im-
pliedly, however, in this case half
affected.
98. crescentem . . . utrem, ἐλe
szwe//ing zwóma-öag. — tumidis: ac-
tive, puffìmg (?). Cf. Zumidus Aus-
ter, Virg. Æn. III. 357.
IOO. certum : sharp/y, so as to
be perfectly sure of your aim. Cf.
certum scire, etc.
IoI. Dama: cf. v. I8.
Io2. fortem, moble. ' Cf. v. 64,
and II. I. I6, where, however, the
conception is somewhat different.
The word, expressing courage, spirit,
and the stalwart virtues generally, is
very widely used to express the
highest ideal of a Roman worthy.
So bonus et fortis, the stock Ro-
man expression for a gentleman. Cf.
Æρ. I. 9. I 3 ; Cic. Brut. 2. 6. For
the construction, supply quaeram,
or the like, which is regularly omit-
ted, cf. TT. 7, 1 16,
134
[LIB. II.
HORATI SERMONES.
sparge subinde, et, si paulum potes, illacrimare: est
gaudia prodentem voltum celare.
Sepulcrum
permissum arbitrio sine sordibus exstrue ; funus IO5
egregie factum laudet vicinia.
Si quis
forte coheredum senior male tussiet, huic tu
dic, ex parte tua seu fundi sive domus sit
emptor, gaudentem nummo te addicere. — Sed me
imperiosa trahit Proserpina: vive valeque !
IIO
VI.
Hoc erat in votis : modus agri non ita magnus,
hortus ubi et tecto vicinus iugis aquae fons
et paulum silvae super his foret.
Eene est.
di melius fecere.
Io3. est, 'tis zwe//, properly like
ê$eortuv, it is a//ozvable, ome /nay
(well).
Io4. celare : î. e. with tears.
Io5. arbitrio : cf. II. 3. 86. —
sordibus : cf. I. 6. IO7.
Io8. fundi, lamd. — domus :
buildings in the city.
Io9. emptor, disposea, zo διαμ. —
nummo, for a somg, or nominal
price. Cf. Plaut. A/osz. I I 5.
I IO. imperiosa (cf. érauv) IIepo e-
φδveua, Hom. /?. IX. 457), a//-pozvez-
ful, whose imperia cannot be diso-
beyed. To Hecate, identified with
Proserpine, was assigned the control
of the shades, amd to her were
addressed the prayers intended to
summon them. Cf. I. 8. 33, and
Odys. XI. 225 (άτpvvev yàp άγαυ}
TIepore®öveta). — vive valeque : a
common form of parting salutation.
Cf. Ep. I. 6. 67, and Æospes vive
vale, Inscript. in Bull. Jst. Arch.
I872, p, 3o.
Auctius atque
Nil amplius oro,
SATIRE 6. This Satire combines
a cry of the heart against the wor-
ries of the city and praises of the
delights of country life, with a deli-
cate expressiom of thanks to Mæ-
cenas for his gift of the Sabine farm,
which has enabled Horace to satisfy
his craving. The fable of the city
and the country mouse ingeniously
introduced gracefully repeats the
same general theme.
I. hoc : referring to the follow-
ing. For the spirit of the exprcs-
sion of satisfaction, cf. Od. II. I 8.
I4, III. 16. 29; Æρ. I. I6. 5—16 amd
I. 18. Io4. — in votis, amzomg 7/ y
prayers. Cf. in optatis, Cic. ad Fa//z.
II. I 3. 2. — modus: î. e. a moderate
amount. — ita: cf. II. 2. 46.
2. iugis : either with aquae or
fons. The latter would follow the
favorite interlocked order, but cf.
Ep. I. I 5. I6.
3. super his, ìm additiom zo //is ;
in prose it would be accusative. —
v. IO3—I IO, VI. I-I5.] HORATI
SERMONES. 135
>« • » `•• *•• *- <…>. > 3 \\ , £?
Maia nate, nisi ùt própria-hàec mihi mùnera fàxis. 5
Si neque maiorem feci ratione mala rem,
nec sum facturus vitio culpave minorem ;
si veneror stultus nihil horum : “ O si angulus ille
proximus accedat, qui nunc denormat agellum !
O si urnam argenti fors quae mihi monstret, ut illi, Io
thesauro invento qui mercennarius agrum
illum ipsum mercatus aravit, dives amico
Hercule !' si quod adest gratum iuvat, hac prece te oro :
pingue pecus domino facias et cetera praeter
ingenium, utque soles, custos mihi maximus adsis! 15
auctius: //zore generous?y, a rare
adverb, but in accordance with the
meaning of auctus, abzuma amt.
5. Maia nate : Mercury, as the
god of gain, cf. II. 3. 68; but cf.
also v. I 5 with Od. II. I7. 29, and
II. 7. I 3. — propria: cf. II. 2. I 29,
and Æρ. II. 2. I 72. — faxis: this
use of the perfect for the pres-
ent seems to be colloquial and ar-
chaic, as certainly the use of the
short form is.
6. si : introducing the protasis of
oro, v. I 3, a common form of sup-
plication in ancient times. Cf. ** as
we forgive those,” etc., Od. III. 18.
5; Σμινθeυ! e%roté τοι χαpfevt' étri
vmòv èpei/a, Hom. /2. I. 39. — ma-
iorem, etc.: cf. I. 4. Io8. — ratione
mala, azz y base meamzs prompted by
avarice. This is spoken of in the
past because the poet takes the pres-
ent condition of his estate as the
starting point.
7. sum facturus, etc.: i.e. have
no bad habits of luxury (vitio) to
waste, nor idleness (culpa) to neg-
lect, and so lose my property. These
are spoken of as to their future re-
sults. The whole claims the favor
of the god on account of past vir-
tues and present character.
8. veneror: ì.e. pray for in my
worship of the gods. Cf. II. 2. 124;
and qui mu//a deos venerati sum?
comtra eius sa/utem, Cic. ad Fam.
VI. 7. — stultus: î. e. as covetous,
and so not a sapiems, who would
have no vain desires. — nihil ho-
rum, mot/iimg /i/ée t/iis.
9. denormat, breaks the /ine o/,
a technical word of surveying.
Io, urnam argenti: the ancients
om account of the insecure state of
society were often wont to bury
their treasure, and at times to lose
it. Cf. Plaut. Azu/ularia and mec
vero quemquam seme/// audivi obli-
zumz quo /oco thesaurum obruisset,
Cic. de Sem. 2 I. •
I I. qui mercennarius: a short-
hand way of saying qui agrum, quem
/yzerce/a/za rizzs a7raveraz, Zyzepraazzzs
(and so the owner) araviz. This
compendious form seems colloquial
like so many other expressions in
the Satires.
I 3. Hercule : regarded as a giver
of gain (τλουτοδότηs), especially
from hidden treasures. — gratum,
7my grate/u! soul, i.e. if I am satis-
fied and thankful.
14. pingue, heavy (to render the
punning force of the word as ap-
plied to ingenium), dull, zhìcè. —
cetera, a// //;e rest.
I 5. ut soles: cf. Od. II. I7. 29,
and Od. II, 7. I 3. Mercury being
l36 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
Ergo ubi me in montis et in arcem ex urbe removi,
quid prius illustrem saturis Musaque pedestri ?
Nec mala me ambitio perdit nec plumbeus Auster
autumnusque gravis, Libitinae quaestus acerbae.
Matutine pater, seu Iane libentius audis, 2O
unde homines operum primos vitaeque labores
instituunt (sic dis placitum), tu carminis esto
the god of eloquence is regarded by
Horace as his tutelary divinity.
I6. ergo : â.e. since I am thus
contented and thankful. — arcem,
may stronghold, with a reference at
once to the heights and the secure
retreat from cares. Cf. Ep. I. IO. 8.
I 7. prius, ratÃer, ?.e. than the
pleasures of my country home (cf.
note to ergo, v. I6). — saturis : î. e.
in a composition which reflects the
whole life of the author, andis an in-
discriminate collection of thoughts,
facts, and feelings (cf. II. I. 3o),
and so may well begin with what is
nearest the poet's heart. — pedes-
tris: cf. Æρ. II. I. 25o.
I8. mala ambitio, etc. : î. e. in
this retreat I secure at the same time
health of mindandofbody.—plum-
heus, /eadem, as weighing down the
body, making one feel lifeless and
inert. — Auster: i.e. the sirocco, an
especially oppressive and deadening
wind. -
I9. gravis, fatal, inducing fevers.
— Libitinae: in the temple ofVenus
Libitina were found the undertakers
and all the paraphernalia of inter-
ment. The connection of this tem-
ple with death was probably merely
accidental, but in course of time the
name of the goddess came to be as-
sociated with funerals. Cf. Od. III.
3o. 7. — quaestus: a fee was paid
at the registration of burials, and
hence the autumn as causing death
was a gain to the goddess. Trans.
profiàaà/e zo, The poet means to
say that this country abode is salu-
tary for soul and body too.
2o. matutine pater, god of the
mor/zing, apparently a half humor-
ous invocation used merely to ex-
press the morning itself. — Iane :
following the custom of the ancients
in addressing their gods (cf. Carm.
Saec. I4 seq., //i?/.yia . . . Sive zu
Lucáma probas vocari, Seu Gemita-
/is) he identifies his supposed divi-
nity with Janus, the god of begin-
nings -generally. The vocative is
used as the actual form that the god
would hear. Cf. Ep. I. 7. 38. — au-
dis, arz called, perhaps originally an
imitation of άκούeiv but afterwards
thoroughly Latinized (cf. Æρ. I. 7.
38, and erat surdaster M. Cras-
sus, sed aliud molestius quod male
audiebat, Cic. 7'usc. V. 4o).
2I. unde . . . instituunt (= a
quo incipiunt), zwöz/. zv/.ome (as the
god invoked) mem begim, etc. —
operum vitaeque : a case of what
is called hendiadys, where a par-
ticular idea is mentioned first, and
a general one including the first is
added. -But the same form is also
used in English, and really has no
claim to be called a figure at all.
— operum refers to the thing to be
done, labores to the effort to do it.
22. sic dis, etc. : i.e. in the
arrangement of the world this god
has this particular function of pre-
siding over beginnings (cf. Janua-
rius, and the temple of Janus in
relation to war).
VI. I6—32.]
137
HORATI SERMONES,
principium. Romae sponsorem me rapis.
* Heia,
ne prior officio quisquam respondeat, urge !'
Sive Aquilo radit terras seu bruma nivalem 25
interiore diem gyro trahit, ire necesse est.
Postmodo quod mi obsit clare certumque locuto,
luctandum in turba et facienda iniuria. tardis.
* Quid vis, insane, et quas res agis ?' improbus urget
iratis precibus ; * tu pulses omne quod obstat, 3o
ad Maecenatem memori si mente recurras ?'
Hoc iuvat et melli est, non mentiar.
23. Romae : as opposed to the
undisturbed quiet of country life.
— sponsorem, as a bondsmam.
In the Roman legal proceedings
there were many cases in which bail
was necessary, so that it seems to
have been a common friendly offì-
cîzz//z to act as security. Cf. I. I. I I
and Æρ. II. 2. 67. The trials begam
about nine (cf. I. 9. 35); and prob-
ably the preliminary proceedings
(in iure) were earlier. — Heia,
etc. : the poet's own reflectionis put
into the mouth of the god.
24. prior, be/ore you. — officio :
cf. note to v. 23, and officiosus, II.
5. 48, Ep. I. 7. 8.
24. respondeat: answer to the
call of duty, i.e. perform the duty
itself.
25. Aquilo, etc.: notwithstand-
ing the raw wind or freezing cold,
the 7'ramomtama. — radit, rasps.
26. interiore : i.e. at the winter
solstice, when the short day seems
to make a circle of small diameter,
as the sum does in the heaven. —
trahit: as if the day came unwil-
lingly to an end.
27. postmodo : with obsit. —
obsit, cause /oss, when by and by
he has to pay the amount of his
surety. — clare : î. e. without shrink-
ing. — certum : un the exact form
At simul atras
prescribed, as otherwise the act
would be invalid.
28. luctandum, etc. : î. e. he has
at once to hurry away to the next
duty, his morning call (salutatio)
on Mæcenas. — facienda, etc. : in-
dicating his hurry in a more lively
way by its effects.
• 29. quid vis, etc.: the remon-
strance of the persons he runs
against. — improbus, ?//?pudem z/y.
3o. precibus, i//eprecatioms.— pul-
ses, do yota ?/.?/2/3 you mzzzsz Aemyocâ
dozvm. Subjunctive of indignant
question.
3 I. ad Maecenatem, etc.: im-
plying that his relation to Mæcenas
is known and envied. — memori
mente, thámkimg of mo//iimg but
/, i//z. There seems to be am implied
taunt.
32. melli est, is szweez as /ioney
zo //ze. — non mentiar, / zg/?// moz
de/ay, i.e. to tell the truth, though
the statement is contrary to my
argument. The words contain also
of course a complijment to Mæcenas.
— at: ì.e. but when I arrive it is no
better, as it might be, if it were only
on the way that he was subject to
these annoyances, which after all
have their compensations as he has
just said. — atras: cf. I. 8. Io.
138
[LIB. II.
HORATI SERMONES.
ventum est Esquilias, aliena negotia centum
per caput et circa saliunt latus.
* Ante secundam
Roscius orabat sibi adesses ad Puteal cras.' 35
* De re communi scribae magna atque, nova te
orabant hodie meminisses, Quinte, reverti.'
* Imprimat his cura Maecenas signa tabellis.'
Dixeris, * Experiar : '
* Si vis, potes,' addit et instat.
Septimus octavo proprior iam fugerit annus, 4o
ex quo Maecenas me coepit habere suorum -
in numero ; dumtaxat ad hoc, quem tollere raeda
vellet iter faciens, et cui concredere nugas
hoc genus : * Hora quota est ? ' — * Thraex est Gallina
Syro par ? ' —
33. Esquilias: on the Esquilime
was Mæcenas's house and a fine
garden. — negotia, affa? rs.
34. saliunt, assail ; the figure is
too strong to be literally rendered,
- though it was originally in our Eng-
lish word as well. — ante, etc.: the
words of a messenger of Roscius
who had some claim or Other upon
the poet. — ante secundam : i.e.
in the first twelfth of the day.
35. orabat: like the epistolary
imperfect, which is written with ref-
erence to the time of the reading.
Very likely the messages are con-
ceived as written and quoted ver-
batim. — Puteal: the Puteal Libo-
nis, a kind of well curb in the Forum
(cf. Ep. I. I9. 8) around a place
once struck by lightning. As it was
near the tribunal of the prætor, the
matter was probably a judicial one
in which Horace would appear as
advocatus. Cf. I. 9. 38.
36. de re communi, etc., a me7v
2matter of great importamce zo our
body. Horace had once been a regu-
lar clerk of the treasury. The expres-
sions aliena negotia, reverti, and
re communi seem to indicate that
he was a clerk still, but only a nomi-
nal one. Cf. the case of Sarmentus,
I. 5. 66.
37. meminisses, you zwill mo?
forget. — Quinte, friemd Horace
(cf. II. 5. 32), as the prænomen in-
dicates intimacy. — reverti, come
£m, probably to the office of the
quæstors, which he would not al-
ways do if he was a mere 110111imal
clerk.
38. imprimat, etc.: the words
of some one who wished to get
a favor from Mæcenas through
Horace's influence.
39. dixeris, áfyozz (î. e. Horace)
say ; hortatory subjunctive. — si
vis, etc.: this statement Horace
ingeniously uses as a transition to
his relations with Maecenas.
4o. septimus, etc.: this would
give as the date of the Satire B.C. 3 I,
as that of his introduction was about
B.C. 38. Cf. Dacis, v. 53.
42. dumtaxat ad hoc, mere/y 'o
?/, is extemt ; i.e. not in a close in-
timacy as a confidential friend.
43. nugas : î. e. only the merest
trifles of conversation.
44. hoc genus, of/his sort, prop-
VI. 33-53.] HORATI SERMONES. 139
* Matutina parum cautos iam frigora mordent ; ' — 45
et quae rimosa bene deponuntur in aure.
Per totum hoc tempus subiectior in diem et horam
invidiae noster. Ludos spectaverat una,
luserat in Campo : * Fortunae filius !' omnes.
Frigidus a Rostris manat per compita rumor: 5O
quicumque obvius est, me consulit: “ O bone (nam te
scire, deos quoniam propius contingis, oportet),
numquid de Dacis audisti ?'
erly in apposition with nugas. —
Thraex, the 77 raciam, i.e. a gladi-
ator in Thraciam arms, a round
shield and curved sword. The Ro-
mans were fond of fights in which
gladiators of different and outland-
ish arms were matched against each
other, and they talked about their
favorites much as our sporting men
talk about oarsmen and ball-players.
— Gallina, f/ie Châcâem, a nickname.
— Syro: a gladiator's name, prob-
ably of a mìrmi//o (the kind that
usually fought against the Thraeces,
cf. Cic. A/ii/. III. I 2, Suet. Dom. Io)
armed in the Gallic fashion, with
a large, strong shield, and heavy
21ÌTÌTnOr.
45. matutina, etc. :
marks about the weather.
46. rimosa, deponuntur : the
figure of a depositis not uncommon
in reference to secrets, cf. Od. I. 27.
I8; and mihi quod credideris sumes
zzôi posîveris, Pl. 7'rim. I45. Cf.
also Ter. Æzum. Io5, p/em us räma-
?rtem sum hac atque i//ac per/7uo.
The whole means that Horace was
only trusted with things that would
do no harm if betrayed, though
people outside thought otherwise, as
appears from the following.
48. noster, our friema, Horace.
— una: î. e. with Mæcenas.
49. omnes: sc. inquiunt.
mere re-
* Nil equidem.' * Ut tu
5o. frigida, chil/img, as being bad
news. — a Rostris : i.e. from the
rostra, where news would be an-
nounced to the crowd in the Forum;
or if not publicly announced first
made known there. — per compita,
by the street cormers, where the
next largest assemblies of mem would
be collected.
5 I. quicumque, etc.: further ex-
plaining the invidia, but at the
same time showing that the real
state of the case was different
from that supposed by the envious
crowd. — O bone, my good fríema,
but apparently with a touch of
depreciation.
52. deos : trans. literally, but re-
ferring to the leadingstatesman with
whom Horace was supposed to be
in contact from his intimacy with
Maecenas.
53. num quid, etc.: yozz /ìaven'z,
etc., have yota ? The question for-
mally but not really expects a nega-
tive answer, as often the correspond-
ing form in other languages. —
Dacis : in B.C. 31, after the battle of
Actium, an invasion of Italy was
feared from the Dacians who had
been on the side Of Antony (cf. v.
41). — nil equidem, mo? a f/iimg. —
ut tu, etc., zw/.az a zwag, etc., the
answer of the incredulous interlo-
cutOr.
140 HORATI SERMONES, [LIB. II.
J * v^^
semper eris derisor!' * At omnes di exagitent me,
si quicquam.' * Quid, militibus promissa Triquetra 55
praedia Caesar, an est Itala tellure daturus ? '
Iurantem me scire nihil mirantur, ut unum
scilicet egregii mortalem altique silenti.
<-i*
Perditur haec inter misero lux non sine votis :
O rus, quando ego te aspiciam ? quandoque licebit 6o
nunc veterum libris, nunc somno et inertibus horis
ducere sollicitae iucunda oblivia vitae ?
O quando faba Pythagorae cognata simulque
uncta satis pingui ponentur holuscula lardo ?
O noctes cenaeque deum ! quibus ipse meique 65
ante larem proprium vescor vernasque procacis
pasco libatis dapibus.
Prout cuique libido est,
siccat inaequalis calices conviva, solutus
54. at omnes, etc. : Horace's
asseveration in reply.
55. quid, etc.: another similar
inquiry. — promissa, etc.: i.e. the
allotments of land to the veterans,
which had been promised by Au-
gustus.
57. unum : not merely a, but the
omae of all men.
59. perditur: instead of perit,
which is the usual substitute for the
passive.— haec : this envy and wor-
ry which are unavoidable in the city.
6I. veterum : cf. II. 3. I I. —
1ibris: abl. of means with ducere.
63. faba, etc. : the simple viands
of the country. — Pythagorae :
beans were forbiddem as food by
Pythagoras, because, as was said by
some, they contain the souls of the
dead. Hence Horace jocosely`calls
them the kinsfolk of that philoso-
pher. — simulque, amd zwith fhem.
64. satis, we/? (with uncta). —
holuscula, humóle greens.
65. deum : i.e. as enjoyable as
theirs. — mei : i.e. friends.
66. ante larem : î. e. the hearth,
which, according to the simple cus-
tom of the early Romans, stood at
the back of the atrium, where also
was the place for the household
god, the /ar familiaris. Cf. Epod.
2. 66 ; Serv. to Aem. I. 73o. —
vernas, househola serva mts ; this
also points to the simple habits of
early times retained in country life,
according to which the slaves also
ate in the atrium.—procacis, sa?/cy,
a characteristic ofthe slaves brought
up in the house along with the
children.
67. libatis dapibus: the rem-
nant of the feast. Properly the
words refer to a rich feast, of which
part was offered to the gods (li-
bare). — libido, famcy.
68. inaequalis: not (as was usual
at formal dinners) prescribed by
regulation (legibus) as to the
VI. 54-79.]
14]
HORATI SERMONES.
legibus insanis, seu quis capit acria fortis
pocula, seu modicis uvescit laetius.
Ergo 7o
sermo oritur, non de villis domibusve alienis,
nec male necne Lepos saltet ; sed quod magis ad nos
pertinet et nescire malum est agitamus : utrumne
divitiis homines an sint virtute beati;
quidve ad amicitias, usus rectumne, trahat nos ; 75
et quae sit natura boni, summumque quid eius.
Cervius haec inter vicinus garrit anilis
ex re fabellas.
Si quis nam laudat Arelli
sollicitas ignarus opes, sic incipit : ' Olim
\
amount of wine and water. Cf. II.
2. I23.
69. insanis, absura, crazy, as
being irrational, merely freaks of
fashion. — capit: î. e. is able to
stand. — acria, s/rom.g.
7O. laetius, etc., de/ights rather
zo, etc. — ergo : i.e. in accordance
with the frugal character of the
meal. Cf. II. 2. 4 seq.
71. alienis : which would indi-
cate envy or rivalry in display,
whereas their conversation is di-
rected to their own ethical improve-
ment.
72. Lepos(a pantomime dancer):
as a sample of trivial themes.
73. utrumne : cf. II. 3. 295 with
note.
74. divitiis, etc.: one of the
favorite ethical questions of the
ancients was whether men could
be perfectly happy (beatissimi)
through virtue alone, the Stoic
school holding that it was possible,
against the Peripatetics. Cf. Cic.
7'usc. Disp. V. passim.
75. usus rectumne, advantage
(cf. I. I. 73), or virtue (homestum,
tò TpéTov, cf. I. I. Io7), the former
being the Epicuream, and the latter
the Stoic view. — trahat: î. e. the
origin of friendship.
76. boni, the good ; the technical
name for that which being in itself
desirable may be used as the crite-
rion of human action, answering in
ancient philosophy to “ the chief
end of man.” — summum eius :
the summum bomum, called also
fìmìs bomorum, and exzremuzye
δο/?/z//z, the ultimate foundation of
all ethical systems. Cf. Cicero de
Æìmibus, passim, which is a treatise
on that subject.
77. Cervius: doubtless a neigh-
bor (cf. mei, v. 65) dining with the
poet. — haec inter, im the /a//é. —
garrit, te//s in Zizyely szraim. —
anilis fabellas, 7zzz/rse/y za/es, like
** old wives' fables,'° but without the
contempt implied in that phrase.
78. ex re, im point, arising from
the subject, and illustrating it. —
Arelli: a rich neighbor, — so that
after all, human nature was too much
for them, and they did talk ** de
villis domibusve alienis.”
79. sollicitas, care-/.atamtea. —
ignarus, foo/ish/y, not knowing the
true nature of happiness. — olim,
omce upon a time.
J 42
[LIB. II.
HORATI SERMONES.
rusticus urbanum murem mus paupere fertur 8o
accepisse cavo, veterem vetus hospes amicum,
asper et attentus quaesitis, ut tamen artum
solveret hospitiis animum.
Quid multa ? neque ille
sepositi ciceris nec longae invidit avenae,
aridum et ore ferens acinüm semesaque lardi 85
frusta dedit, cupiens varia fastidia cena
vincere tangentis male singula dente superbo;
cum pater ipse domus palea porrectus in horna
esset ador loliumque, dapis meliora relinquens.
Tandem urbanus ad hunc : * Quid te iuvat,' inquit,
* amice,
9O
praerupti nemoris patientem vivere dorso ?
Vis tu homines urbemque feris praeponere silvis ?
Carpe viam, mihi crede, comes, terrestria quando
mortalis animas vivunt sortita, neque ulla est
aut magno aut parvo leti fuga : quo, bone, circa, 95
dum licet, in rebus iucundis vive beatus,
vive memor quam sis aevi brevis.'
Haec ubi dicta
agrestem pepulere, domo levis exsilit ; inde
8I. veterem vetus : fzvo o/a!
friends, gues? amd host. Notice the
general Epic flavor of the story.
82. asper, ascetic, not self-indul-
gent. — ut: î. e. talis or ita ut. —
artum, carefu?, properly not al-
lowed to expand in genial relaxa-
tion.
83. quid multa : a common form
of transition, like ** to make a long
story short.”
84. ciceris : genitive after invi-
dit, apparently an imitation of the
Greek; for the usual construction,
see I. 6. 5o.
86. fastidia, wamt, o/ appetite,
«lisdaining common `food.' The
viands are what the host regards as
delicacies.
87. male, /ara/y. — superbo,
disdaim/u/.
88. pater domus : a variation on
paterfamilias. -
91. patientem, contentea, patient
of the privations which your life
brings with it. — dorso, etc. : the
rocky wooded ridge.
, 92. vis, an informal exhortation,
like our zwi// you ? or zwom'z you ?
93. mihi crede, taÂe my advice,
a common form of encouragement
and exhortation. — terrestria, etc. :
i.e. since life is so short, enjoy it
while it lasts.
94. sortita, wit/, the destîm y of;
lit. having got by lot. .
95. quo . . . circa : separated for
the sake of the metre,
vI. 8o—I I 7.]
143
HORATI SERMONES.
ambo propositum peragunt iter, urbis aventes
moenia nocturni subrepere.
Iamque tenebat IOO
mox medium caeli spatium, cum ponit uterque
in locuplete domo vestigia, rubro ubi cocco
tincta super lectos canderet vestis eburnos,
multaque de magna superessent fercula cena,
quae procul exstructis inerant hesterna canistris. Io5
Ergo, ubi purpurea porrectum in veste locavit -
agrestem, veluti succinctus cursitat hospes
continuatque dapes, nec non verniliter ipsis
fungitur officiis, praelambens omne quod affert.
Ille cubans gaudet mutata sorte bonisque *. IIO
rebus agit laetum convivam, cum subito ingens
valvarum strepitus lectis excussit utrumque.
Currere per totum pavidi conclave, magisque
exanimes trepidare, simul domus alta Molossis
personuit canibus.
Tum rusticus * Haud mihi vita 115
est opus hac,' ait, * et valeas ; me silva cavusque
tutus ab insidiis tenui solabitur ervo.'
98. levis: i.e. gladly.
IO4. fercula, courses ; properly
the trays on which the courses were
served at a Romam banquet.
Io5. procul, az ome side, not
necessarily at, a distance ; derived
from pro, cf. Proculus and proxi-
mus. — exstructis, zwe// fi//ea,
Àeaped high, with the plenteous
food.
IO7. succinctus, a zwaiter ; cf. II.
8. Io.
Io8. verniliter, /i/ée a pamperea,
house-servamt, tasting everything
with the greed ofthat class.— ipsis:
?.e. he not only bustles about as
busy as a waiter, which he might
do even as a host, but he also per-
forms the servile offices like a slave
and with the greedy taste of one as
well. •
I I I. agit, p/ays the part of.
I I 2. valvarum, etc. : î. e. when
the work of the day. begins. — Mo-
lossis : cf. Virg. Georg. III. 4o5.
I I4. simul: ?.e. simul ac.
II 5. haud mihi est opus, //aave
mo occasiom for, with the same spirit
as in ** no, I thank you.”
I 17. ervo: abl. of means. The
meaning of course is that the secu-
rity of his home even with his hum-
ble fare will console him for the loss
of the dainties which it does not
afford.
144
[LIB. II.
HORATI SERMONES.
VII.
Davus. Iamdudum ausculto, et cupiens tibi dicere servus
pauca, reformido.
amicum
A7o/raz. Davusne ?
D. Ita, Davus,
mancipium domino et frugi, quod sit satis, hoc est,
ut vitale putes.
A. Age, libertate Decembri,
quando ita maiores voluerunt, utere ; narra. 5
D. Pars hominum vitiis gaudet constanter et urget
propositum ; pars multa natat, modo recta capessens,
interdum pravis obnoxia.
Saepe notatus
cum tribus anellis, modo laeva Priscus inani,
vixit inaequalis, clavum ut mutaret in horas, IO
SATIRE 7. Horace here makes
sport of the Stoic paradox, ** So/um
sapientem2 esse /iberum2 et omnem
stu//um servaeum ” (cf. I. 3 and II.
3). In this, however, as in the other
cases, the poet uses the truth under-
lying the paradox to ridicule the
follies of mankind, including him-
self. The argument is put into the
mouth of his slave, who represents
himself as having got his teachings
through the doorkeeper of the Stoic
preacher, Crispinus (cf. I. I. I2O).
To give probability to the license of
the slave, he sets the scene at the
Saturnalia, during which, in memory
of the Golden Age, the equality of
all men was in a manner recog-
nized.
I. ausculto, etc.: as the master
is busy, apparently writing or think-
ing, he does not see the slave, who,
after listening by the door to see
whether his master is engaged with
anybody, finally ventures to make
his presence known. The master
still does not look up, but recognizes
him by his voice.
2. Davusne, is i? you, Davus ?
Por the mame, cf. II. 5. 9I.
3. frugi, an honest fe//o7v (cf. II.
5. 77), referring to the virtues of
industry, sobriety, and the like.
4. ut vitale, etc., moz too good' to
/iz/e ; cf. “ the good die young,” a
familiar notion with the ancients
(cf. Plaut. Æacch. 816; Ov. Am. II.
6. 39). — libertate Decembri: i.e.
of the Saturnalia.
6. pars, etc.: the slave in Hor-
ace's regular manner approaches the
subject gradually (cf. v. 21), begin-
ning with a philosophical division
of the vicious into those who follow
vice with vigor, and those who
weakly show their feebleness of
purpose even in vicious courses.
7. natat, drìfè.
8. notatus, conspicuous, but with
a shade of blame in it, on account
of the display of luxury and effemi-
nacy.
9. Priscus: a man of senatorial
rank, an example of this incon-
sistency, and want of constant pur-
pose.
IO. inaequalis : cf. I. 3. 9. —
clavum mutaret: i.e. from broad
to narrow, now appearing with pride
as a senator, now as a simple eques.
VII. I-24.]
145
HORATI SERMONES.
aedibus ex magnis subito se conderet, unde
mundior exiret vix libertinus honeste ;
iam moechus Romae, iam mallet doctus Athenis
vivere, Vertumnis quotquot sunt natus iniquis.
Scurra Volanerius, postquam illi iusta cheragra I5
contudit articulos, qui pro se tolleret atque
mitteret in phimum talos, mercede diurna
conductum pavit ; quanto constantior isdem
in vitiis, tanto levius miser ac prior illo,
qui iam contento, iam laxo fune laborat. 2O
H. Non dices hodie quorsum haec tam putida tendant,
furcifer ?
D. Laudas
D. Ad te, inquam.
H. Quo pacto, pessime ?
fortunam et mores antiquae plebis, et idem,
si quis ad illa deus subito te agat, usque recuses,
I 2. mundior, respec/ab/e ; î. e. of
the better class. — honeste, zwiff.
decem2cy.
I 3. doctus, a p/ai/osop/ier.
14. Vertumnis : there was prop-
erly only one god of this name, the
god of the changing seasons. The
poet, however, jocosely multiplies
the number, and represents them as
having given him at his birth all
their fickleness to his injury.
I 5. Volanerius : an example of
persistence. — iusta, zwe// earmea,
by excesses at the table, which he
frequented as scurra, or professional
diner-out.
I6. contudit : î. e. so that he
could no longer do the service for
himself. — se : the reflexive allowed
because the clause is a purpose of
the man.
I7. talos, ?/ie &mucÅ?e-όomes, used
by the ancients as well as dice for
gamlng.
I8. conductum, etc. : indicating
his devotion to the game. — pavit,
Âept.
I 9. levius miser : the slave
makes the consistently vicious man
the better Off of the two.
2o. contento, etc. : the figure
probably derived from leading an
animal, whose attempts to get free
only trouble it the more.
2 I. hodie : not in the literal.
sense, but as in the comedy in its
weakest use, mozv. — quorsum . . .
tendunt, zw/iaz . . . ìs drávimg at,
the regular expression (often with
tendere omitted) for asking the
meaning of an argument. — putida,
si/y szzzff.
22. ad te, at yozz, the slave taking
the quorsum in a different sense,
and so bringing the argument home
in Horace's usual manner, as he
proceeds to explain in the next
verse. — laudas : cf. II. 6. 6o. It
is characteristic of Horace that this
reproach should be selected, which
is in the main true (cf. Æρ. I. 8. 12).
23. fortunam, comditiom, in re-
gard to their mode of life.
24. usque, “ eve7y zime.”
146 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
aut quia non sentis, quod clamas, rectius esse, 25
aut quia non firmus rectum defendis, et haeres
nequiquam caeno cupiens evellere plantam.
Romae rus optas ; absentem rusticus urbem
tollis ad astra, levis. Si nusquam es forte vocatus
ad cenam, laudas securum holus, ac, velut usquam 3o.
vinctus eas, ita te felicem dicis amasque
quod nusquam tibi sit potandum, Iusserit ad se
Maecenas serum sub lumina prima venire
convivam : * Nemon' oleum fert Ocius ?
Ecquis
audit ? ' cum magno blateras clamore fugisque. 35
Mulvius et scurrae, tibi non referenda precati,
discedunt.
* Etenim fateor me,' dixerit ille,
* duci ventre levem, nasum nidore supinor,
imbecillus, iners, si quid vis, adde, popino.
Tu, cum sis quod ego et fortassis nequior, ultro 4O.
insectere velut melior, verbisque decoris
25. sentis, rea/?y thimâ ; i.e. it is
pure affectation on Horace's part.
26. firmus, etc.: i.e. or else it is
on account of infirmity of purpose,
in which case Horace is in the posi-
tion of those referred to in v. 7.
3o. securum, quiet, as free from
the cares and worries of intercourse
with the great. Cf. sollicitae opes,
II. 6. 79. — velut (ita), jusz as í/.
— usquam, a/zyzw/}e7'e, used on
account of the negative implied.
Equivalent to “ as if you were
obliged to go, like a slave to the
country, in case you were invited.”
3 I. ita, referring to velut. —
amas, /, zg yourse?/ (cf. I. 2. 54).
32. iusserit: hortatory subjunc-
tive, expressing a condition.
33. serum, etc.: i.e. he is only
invited at the last moment, when it
is already getting dark.
34. oleum : for the lantern to
conduct him. — fert: the ordinary
colloquial use of present for future
as in the comedy.
35. fugis: are off /i/ée a s/ao/.
36. Mulvius et scurrae : guests.
who hoped to dine with Horace;
hence their wrath. — non refe-
renda, tum/// emtionable f/imgs.
37. etenim : explaining his dis-
appointment. — dixerit, /ae //zight
say, if you asked him. — ille : Mul-
vius, who makes no pretensions to
be a philosopher. • •.
38. levem, zweaÂly. — nasum,
etc., /e/joy z/ae de/ig/24/u//ragoramce,
j.e. of well-cooked viands.
39. si quid vis, ifj/ou /i/ée.
4o. ultro, arrogant?y, having no.
excuse for so doing, as a better man
might have; referring to Horace's
habit of hitting such persons.
4I. insectere : questiom of indig-
nation. — decoris, specious ; i.e. his
duty to Maecenas and the like.
VII. 25-57.] HORATI SERMONES. 147
obvolvas vitium ? ' Quid, si me stultior ipso
quingentis empto drachmis deprenderis ? Aufer
me voltu terrere ; manum stomachumque teneto,
dum quae Crispini docuit me ianitor edo. . 45
Te coniunx aliena capit, meretricula Davum.
Peccat uter nostrum cruce dignius ?
Acris ubi me
natura intendit, sub clara nuda lucerna
quaecumque excepit turgentis verbera caudae,
clunibus aut agitavit equum lasciva supinum, 5O
dimittet neque famosum neque sollicitum ne
ditior aut formae melioris meiat eodem.
Tu cum proiectis insignibus, anulo equestri
Romanoque habitu, prodis ex iudice Dama
turpis, odoratum caput obscurante lacerna, - 55
non es quod simulas ?
Metuens induceris, atque
altercante libidinibus tremis ossa pavore.
42. quid si, etc.: the slave takes
up the reproach of Mulvius. — me,
etc.: the qualities here mentioned
were especially ascribed to slaves.
Cf. vv. Io2, IO9; II. 6. IO9; I. 3.
8I.
43. quingentis drachmis: i.e. five
hundred denarii, less tham § IOO.OO,
a low price for a slave of any worth.
— deprenderis: mot merely found
to be, but fouma, out zo be, or detected
im being, aS if caught in his pretemce
of virtue. — aufer, dom'' ?/y. Hor-
ace represents himself as angered
by the reproach, thus indicating that
the blow has struck home. Where-
upon the slave replies, as it were,
“ Oh, you needn't try to frighten me
with your frowns; wait till. I show
you why.”
44. terrere : with aufer, as a
complementary infinitive, in accord-
ance with Horace's fondness for
the infinitive with any word whose
meaning is akin to the verbs which
take that construction regularly.
The charges are of course over-
drawn, and Horace does not have
reference to himself alone, but he
includes himself along with others.
Cf. v. I I I. and Æρ. I. I. 97, etc.
53. tu : referring to any respectable
person, not necessarily Horace, of
whom we do not know that he was
an eques. Still his military tribune-
ship makes it possible.
54. Romano, etc.: i.e. the toga.
— ex iudice, etc.: i.e. you change-
your station from an eques to a.
slave, and in fact are what you pre-
tend to be, which is in accordance.
with the Stoic dogma, o//a//e//w szat/-
zzz/7z eSSe Se7^z/247/z.
55. lacerna : a coarse, rough
cloak, often with a capuchin or
hood, as is intimated here.
57. libidinibus : dative after
verbs of contending, as in Greek.
]48
[LIB. II.
HORATI SERMONES.
ę A. ú cú • ú
Quid refert, uri virgis ferroque necari
auctoratus eas, an turpi clausus in arca,
quo te demisit peccati conscia erilis, 6o
contractum genibus tangas caput ?
Estne marito
matronae peccantis in ambo iusta potestas ?
In corruptorem vel iustior. Illa tamen se
non habitu mutatve loco peccatve superne,
cum te formidet mulier neque credat amanti. 65
Ibis sub furcam prudens, dominoque furenti
committes rem omnem et vitam et cum corpore famam.
Evasti: credo metues doctusque cavebis :
quaeres quando iterum paveas, iterumque perire
possis, o totiens servus !
Quae belua ruptis, 7o
cum semel effugit, reddit se prava catenis ?
* Non sum moechus,' ais. Neque ego, hercule, fur, ubi
ValSa.
praetereo sapiens argentea.
Tolle periclum,
iam vaga prosiliet frenis natura remotis.
Tune mihi dominus, rerum imperiis hominumque 75
59. auctoratus, boumd; the tech-
nical expression for the contract of
one who sold himself as a gladiator.
Cf. i//ius turpissimzi auctoramtemtâ
verba sumt : aurì vìmcìrì ferroque
mecari. Sen. Æρ. 37. Of course an-
other proof that such a man is a
slave.
6o. conscia: cf. I. 2. I3o. «*
6I. contractum, etc.: cf. Fal-
staff in the buck-basket, Merry
Vives of Windsor. — estne ma-
rito, Âasm'? //ae /, usbama. Therefore
the gallant is a slave.
63. illa, etc. : she is the less
guilty one of the two.
64. mutat, etc.: cf. vv. 53—55. —
1oco, ìm posi/iom.
65. cum, etc.: the reason why
she is an unwilling partner.
66. sub furcam : a common
punishment of slaves. Cf. furcifer,
V. 22.
68. evasti (old and colloquial
form for evasisti), you have got off,
i.e. we will suppose so. — credo :
ironical, with the following.
69. quaeres, etc.: i.e. instead of
that, you will only look for another
opportunity to be a slave.
72. non sum, etc.: i.e. that is
not my character; this argument
does not apply to me. The answer
is, “you want to be, only you don't
dare,” and this according to the
Stoic doctrine was just as bad. Cf.
Aep. I. I6. 53. *
74. vaga, and rum wild.
75. imperiis, zo the dictates (ab-
lative).
VII. 58—89.]
149
HORATI SERMONES.
tot tantisque minor, quem ter vindicta quaterque
imposita haud umquam misera formidine privet ?
Adde super, dictis quod non levius valeat : nam,
sive vicarius est qui servo paret, uti mos *
vester ait, seu conservus, tibi quid sum ego ?
Nempe 8o
tu, mihi qui imperitas, alii servis miser, atque
duceris, ut nervis alienis mobile lignum.
Quisnam igitur liber ? Sapiens, sibi qui imperiosus,
quem neque pauperies, neque mors, neque vincula ter-
rent,
responsare cupidinibus, contemnere honores 85
fortis, et in se ipso totus, teres, atque rotundus,
externi ne quid valeat per leve morari,
in quem manca ruit semper fortuna.
ex his ut proprium quid noscere ?
76. minor, subject. Cf. Od. I. I2.
57. — vindicta: in the process of
manumission per vimdicfa///, a for-
mal claimant asserted a right to the
slave by striking him with a rod;
the master abandoned his claim, and
the prætor then declared him free.
In the case of a slave to passion,
such a process would be tried in
vaim; hemce how much more a slave
is he.
78. super: cf. Æρ. II. 2. 33.
79. vicarius : a slave bought by
amother out of his peculium to take
his place.
8o. tibi, etc.: i.e. I am only a
z/ica/rizzs or comservus, and yet you
pretend to be my master.
8I. alii, i.e. to your passions.
82. alienis, ìm the hamds of am-
other. — mobile lignum, /i/ée a
damcing puppe?. Such automata
were very familiar to the ancients.
83. quisnam, etc.: the argument
follows the ordinary Stoic form.
Cf. II. 3. I 58; Cic. Aa/rad. V. I.
Potesne
Quinque talenta
34, and I. I. I9. — sapiens: of
course in the technical sense //2e
sage, the ideal perfect mam of the
Stoics. — sibi imperiosus: î. e. over
whom no one but himself has an
z//ιρerâ umz.
84. pauperies, etc.: these evils
being mere accidents independent.
of virtue, the so/um bo722u///, of
course have no effect on the truly
wise man.
85. responsare, deff, depending
on fortis.
86. totus, etc. : ?.e. independent
of all external influence; a familiar
idea with the Stoics. Cf. Cic. Aa7raa'.
II.; 7'usc. Z)isp. V. I2. 36. — teres
atque rotundus, etc.: the figure is
of a smooth cylinder or globe, on
which nothing can gain a foothold,
as it offers no place of lodgement, as
it were, for external accidents.
88. manca, pozverless, crippled
so as to do him no harm.
89. quinque, etc.: Davus an-
swers his own question in the nega-
150 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
poscit te mulier, vexat foribusque repulsum 9O
perfundit gelida, rursus vocat : eripe turpi
colla iugo.
* Liber, liber sum,' dic age !
Non quis ;
urget enim dominus mentem non lenis, et acris
subiectat lasso stimulos, versatque negantem.
Vel cum Pausiaca torpes, insane, tabella, 95
qui peccas minus atque ego, cum Fulvi Rutubaeque
aut Pacideiani contento poplite miror
proelia rubricâ picta aut carbone, velut si
re vera pugnent, feriant, vitentque moventes
arma viri ?
Nequam et cessator Davus ; at ipse IOO
subtilis veterum iudex et callidus audis.
Nil ego, si ducor libo fumante : tibi ingens
tive by showing that Horace is the
slave of passion. The point is in
rursus vocat, wherein the lover is
assumed to be so vexed with his
mistresS as to desire to break off the
connection, but is not sufficiently
master of himself to assert his free-
dom when she summons him again.
94. subiectat, etc., p/ies the spur;
?.e. like spurs. — versat: the same
figure of a restive horse.
95. Pausiaca, of Aausias, a
painter of Sicyon, remarkable for
his skill in foreshortening. There
was a famous painting of his in the
portico of Pompey. See Plin. AV. Æ.
XXXV. I 23 seq. — torpes, stama!
dazed before, indicating a eraze for
painting (cf. Ep. I. 6. I4, and stupet,
Sat. I. 4. 28). The point of the
reproach is that such a passion is
regarded by the Stoics as inconsist-
ent with the serious purpose of the
Sage (cf. Cic. Aa rad. 5. 2). — ta-
bella, a biz of a picture, with de-
preciatiom. Cf. the vivid descrip-
tion in v. 99.
96. peccas : î. e. when Davus
stops to look at the advertisements
of , gladiatorial shows (cf. circus
posters) he is regarded (see v. IOO)
as a worthless loiterer (cf. the mod-
ern errand boy), of course a slavish
vice; why should not then Horace's
admiration in a similar case be re-
garded as a slavish fault. — Fulvi,
etc.: gladiators.
97. contento, etc., stamdimg om.
tiptoe, as he looks at the pictures.
98. rubrica: such posters were
drawn on the walls. Some are
found in Pompeii, scratched in the
plaster (cf. Plin. Λ/. Æ. XXXV. 52).
99. vitent, parry, though the
corresponding process with the an-
cients was one of dodging (cf. elu-
dere).
IOO. Davus, sc. audit, from au-
dis, v. IOI.
IoI. veterum, f/ie o/a' masters. —
callidus, a comz/zoisseur. — audis,
cf. II. 6. 2O.
Io2. nil : î. e. nequam, a good-
for-mofhing, referring to the slavery
of the appetite. — libo: such dain-
ties were apparently for Sale in full
view on the street, as at chestnut
stands or fruit stalls. — tibi ingens,
etc.: i.e. ** are not you equally
greedy?”
vII. 90— I I8.]
HORATI SERMONES. 151
virtus atque animus cenis responsat opimis ?
Obsequium ventris mihi perniciosius est cur ?
Tergo plector enim. Qui tu impunitior illa, Io5
quae parvo sumi nequeunt, obsonia captas ?
Nempe inamarescunt epulae sine fine petitae,
illusique pedes vitiosum ferre recusant
Corpus.
An hic peccat, sub noctem qui puer uvam
furtiva mutat strigili ; qui praedia vendit, IIO
nil servile, gulae parens, habet ? Adde, quod idem
non horam tecum esse potes, non otia recte
ponere, teque ipsum vitas, fugitivus et erro,
iam vino quaerens, iam somno fallere curam :
frustra: nam comes atra premit sequiturque fugacem. II5
H. Unde mihi lapidem ?
H. Unde sagittas ?
D. Quorsum est opus ?
D. Aut insanit homo, aut versus facit. H. Ocius hinc te
ni rapis, accedes opera agro nona Sabino!
Io4. perniciosius est cur : ì.e.
how, in fact, do I suffer for it more
than you?
Io5. enim, to öe sure ; cf. quid
enim, note to I. I. 7.
Io7. nempe, zwhy /
Io8. illusi, failimg you; properly,
being deceived themselves as to
their powers. — vitiosum, zum-
/.ea///.y, from eating too much.
IO9. qui, etc. : another servile
vice, where the slave is led astray by
his appetite.
II 3. ponere, dispose of; i.e.
employ to advantage. — fugitivus
et erro: another allusion to the
faults of slaves.
I I 5. comes : cf. Od. III. I. 4o.
I I 6. unde mihi, etc.: Horace,
to close the satire without forcing,
represents himself as enraged (cf.
II, 3. 323), and stopping the dia-
tribe by a threat of punishment,
which is of course an admission of
its truth. — lapidem : cf. II. 5. Io2.
I I 7. insanit: the allusion is to
the other Stoic paradox, as in II. 3.
The suggestion of insanity is in the
similarity of Horace's cry to that of
some insane person on the stage, so
that Horace is either crazy himself
or writing a tragedy to represent
Ajax or some similar person, which
is just as bad. Cf. II. 3. 322.
I 18. accedes, etc.: i.e. you shal!
be sent into the country to work on
the farm, a common punishment of
city slaves. Cf. Plaut. ///os/e//. I.
I. I8, and many other cases in
Plautus and Terence. — opera, la-
borer. — nona: hence it would seem
Horace had eight, a very moderate
number of farm hands.
152 HORATI SERMONES.
[LIB. II.
VIII.
Horat. Ut Nasidieni iuvit te cena beati ?
Nam mihi quaerenti conviväm dictus heri illic
de medio potare die.
in vita fuerit melius.
Fundam. Sic, ut mihi numquam
Da, si grave non est,
quae prima iratum ventrem placaverit esca. 5
In primis Lucanus aper; leni fuit Austro
captus, ut aiebat cenae pater; acria circum
rapula, lactucae, radices, qualia lassum
pervellunt stomachum, siser, allec, faecula Coa.
His ubi sublatis puer alte cinctus acernam IO
g3 usape purpureo mensam pertersit, et alter
SATIRE 8. This satire is a report
made by Fundanius, one of Horace's
friends, of a dinner given by a mil-
lionaire of the time to Mæcenas and
some of his friends. Although the
host evidently is depicted as having
more money than brains, yet it is
mot merely the ostentation of the
pa7rzyem zz that is satirized, but the
misplaced diligence of the epicure
(cf. II. 2. and 4). Nor must we
suppose that every fact stated is to
be taken as ludicrous any more tham
in Sat. II. 5. The piece is only a
narrative, of which parts are satiri-
cal, parts are humorous incident,
and parts again merely the neces-
sary detail to make a picture.
I. Nasidieni (four syllables):
Otherwise unknown, and perhaps
only a fictitious name. — beati, //ae
7/zz//zoma??re.
2. nam : i.e. I ask, for I learned
you were there when I went to in-
vite you myself.
3. de medio: indulgence in the
pleasures of the table was indicated
by sitting down early rather than by
staying late as in modern times; cf.
tempestiva convivia. — potare, to
Δave beem, etc. (Gr. 276. a).
4. fuerit melius, cf. bene erat
II. 2. I2O.
prima: î. e. in the first course
(ferculum) exclusive of the gus-
tatio. — iratum, cf. latrantem, II.
2. I8.
6. 1eni, etc.: ?.e. the excellence
of the viamd depended on the
weather. This detail suggests an ex-
cessive particularity in these matters.
7. cenae pater, (probably a jo-
cose variation on pater fa//zilias),
our respected /aosz. — circum : î. e.
as a garnish. Cf. II. 4. 75.
8. allec : cf. II. 4. 73. Such stim-
ulating condiments are especially
grateful in sluggish and bilious cli-
mates, and were much used by the
Romam epicures. -
IO. puer, etc.: these statements
seem to indicate a special elegance
of service. — alte cinctus: appar-
ently only a neatly dressed slave
(cf. v. 7o). — acernam : the fine
tables of the ancients were made
either of choice specimens of wood
or of colored marble. Of course
there was here no table-cloth.
I I. purpureo : a useless ele-
gance.—alter: a special slave, called
a ma/ec?a.
VIII. I-20.]
HORATI SERMONES. 153
sublegit quodcumque iaceret inutile quodque
posset cenantis offendere, ut Attica virgo
cum sacris Cereris procedit fuscus Hydaspes,
Caecuba vina ferens, Alcon Chium maris expers. I5
Hic erus : * Albanum, Maecenas, sive Falernum
te magis appositis delectat, habemus utrumque.'
Æ7. Divitias miseras !
Sed quis cenantibus una,
Fundani, pulchre fuerit tibi, nosse laboro.
F. Summus ego, et prope me Viscus Thurinus, et infra, 2o
I 3. Attica virgo: î. e. a Kavm-
q)6pos (cf. I. 3. IO), indicating a
solemnity amd dignity of demeanor
suited to his august mission.
I4. Hydaspes: î. e. an East In-
diam, a rare luxury.
I 5. Caecuba : one of the finer
wines, but not necessarily indicating
any vulgar display (cf. Od. II. I4.
25). — Alcon : the mention of the
name seems to indicate another rare
slave, but whence brought is not
knowm, perhaps from Greece. But
a Greek slave would be no rarity (cf.
A1cis, a German divinity). — Chi-
um : the Greek wines were milder
and sweeter than the Italiam, and
thus formed a contrast and gave
variety. — maris expers, zvizhouz
sea-water, which was usually added
to all but the very best Greek wines,
as men drink Apollinaris with their
wine nowadays. /m su//z//za g/oria
. . . fuere 77aasîum/z CÀïumzque . . .
Λ/αnc gratia ante ommia esz C/azo-
//ze/zio postquam parcius mari com-
dázzmz. Zesόέzzmz spomte suae maturae
mare sapit. Plin. H. V. XIV. 7 (73).
There is not necessarily anything of
bad taste in the things served. The
host gives his guests a choice be-
tween the hot but rich Italian wines
and the sweet and mild but equally
choice Chian, serving the last in its
full strength and at the same time
without the Zamag which the sea-
water would have givem it. If there
is anything wrong in the whole mat-
ter, it is only the overstrained and
anxious nicety of selection and ser-
vice.
I 6. Albanum, etc.: here is ap-
parently an Overwrought anxiety to
please the distinguished guest, but
mot necessarily intended as an os-
tentatious display, notwithstanding
Horace's exclamation. He may
merely meam that such resources
cause a host to worry Over the
matter.
I 9. Fundani; cf. I. IO. 42. —
1aboro nosse, / am a vimg zo Âmozv.
2O. summus, etc.: the triclinium
was arranged round three sides of a
Square, within which was the table,
and the guests reclined there on a
couch, thus:
I. Fundanius. 5. Vibidius.
2. Viscus. 6. Maecenas.
3. Varius. 7. Nomentanus.
4. Servilius. 8. Host.
9. Porcius.

[oTs T a]»
Ap—
7 3
8 2
9 I
- &?
The host would naturally take No. 7;
but see v. 25. The arms of the
154
[LIB. II.
HORATI SERMONES.
si memini, Varius ; cum Servilio Balatrone
Vibidius, quas Maecenas adduxerat umbras;
Nomentanus erat super ipsum, Porcius infra,
ridiculus totas simul absorbere placentas ;
Nomentanus ad hoc, qui, si quid forte lateret, 25
indice monstraret digito : nam cetera turba,
nos, inquam, cenamus avis, conchylia, piscis,
longe dissimilem noto celantia sucum ;
ut vel continuo patuit, cum passeris atque
ingustata mihi porrexerat ilia rhombi. 3O
Post hoc me docuit melimela rubere minorem
ad lunam delecta.
audieris melius.
Quid hoc intersit, ab ipso
Tum Vibidius Balatroni,
* Nos nisi damnose bibimus, moriemur inulti ; '
et calices poscit maiores.
Vertere pallor
3
5
tum parochi faciem, nil sic metuentis ut acris
potores, vel quod male dicunt liberius vel
«couches were at a, b, c, the other
places having only cushions.— Thu-
rinus, of 77. urii, and so probably
not either of those in I. IO. 83.
2I. Varius, cf. I. IO. 44. — Ser-
vilio: unknown.
22. umbras : uninvited persons
brought as parasites by the distin-
guished guest. Cf. Ep. I. 5. 28.
23. Nomentanus was (as also
Porcius) a parasite of the host.
Here he takes the chief place partly
because of the dulness of the host
himself and partly to point out the
choice things of the feast in case
anything should escape notice.
25. ad hoc: cf. II. I. 36.
26. nam : î. e. I speak of this in-
formation given, for the rest of us,
except Nomentanus, were in the
dark as to the viands, on account of
the art used in their preparation.
29. ut, etc.: ?.e. as I soon found
out when he (the host) handed me
something which, if not informed, I
never should have recognized as the
fishes mentioned, neverhavingtasted
the like before.
31. melimela rubere, etc., that //ae
δrig/az rea' app/es zvere picÂea, etc.
32. quid hoc : probably origi-
mally quid was the subject in such
cases, but idiomatically hoc must
be regarded as the subject here, and
quid as a kind of accusative ad-
verb. -
34. damnose, to his ruin, by
their potations of his costly wine.
— moriemur, etc.: i.e. being nau-
seated by the talk about eating, the
guests humorously resolve to avenge
themselves in the manner indicated.
36. parochi, our provider, jo-
cosely for host.
37. maledicunt : i.e. produce
free-spoken chaffing. Cf. I, 4. 89.
VIII. 2I-56.]
155
HORATI SERMONES.
fervida quod subtile exsurdant vina palatum.
Invertunt Allifanis vinaria tota
Vibidius Balatroque, secutis omnibus ; imi 4O
convivae lecti nihilum nocuere lagenis.
Affertur squillas inter murena natantis
in patina porrecta. Sub hoc erus * Haec gravida,' inquit,
* capta est, deterior post partum carne futura.
His mixtum ius est : oleo quod prima Venafri 45
pressit cella; garo de sucis piscis Hiberi; ,•
vino quinquenni, verum citra mare nato,
dum coquitur — cocto Chium sic convenit, ut non
hoc magis ullum aliud ; — pipere albo, non sine aceto,
quod Methymnaeam vitio mutaverit uvam. 5O
Erucas viridis, inulas ego primus amaras
monstravi incoquere ; inlutos Curtillus echinos,
ut melius muria quod testa marina remittat.'
Interea suspensa gravis aulaea ruinas
in patinam fecere, trahentia pulveris atri 55.
quantum non Aquilo Campanis excitat agris.
38. fervida, etc. : i.e. the wines
would prevent the culinary skill
from being appreciated.
39. Allifanis: a large style of
goblet from Allifae in Samnium.
4o. imi lecti: i.e. the parasites
who refrain on account of obsequi-
Ol!SI1€SS.
44. futura, i? zwould be, etc.,
Ęins a separate sentence in Eng-
ISI).
45. prima : î. e. the oil first
pressed, which would be the choic-
est. — Venafri: cf. II. 4. 69.
46. Hiberi: i.e. the scomber, or
macÃere/. s.
48. dum coquitur, whi/e cooÂ-
áng. — cocto, afîer it is cookea, a
different wine must be added. All
these miceties are of the same kind
as those in II. 4.
49. hoc : ablative after magis.
5o. quod : lit. the vinegar, but
properly the acid which turned the
wine and spoiled it (vitio) by mak-
ing it vinegar.
5 I. ego primus : cf. II. 4. 74. —
incoquere, ste7v in the mixture. —
inlutos : i.e. the sea-urchins soaked
give a better juice than the ordinary
fish brine. — Curtillus, another
gourmet.
53. melius : a forced apposition
to echinos, agreeing with (id) an-
tecedent of quod. — testa: î. e. the
echinus.
54. aulaea: apparently a camopy
over the table. Cf. Od. III. 29. I 5;
Virg. Æn. I. 697.
156 HORATI SERMONEs. [LIB. II.
Nos maius veriti, postquam nihil esse pericli
sensimus, erigimur: Rufus posito capite, ut si
filius immaturus obisset, flere. Quis esset
finis, ni sapiens sic Nomentanus amicum 6o
tolleret: “ Heu, Fortuna, quis est crudelior in nos
te deus ?
humanis !'
vix poterat.
Ut semper gaudes illudere rebus
Varius mappa compescere risum
|Balatro suspendens omnia naso,
* Haec est condicio vivendi,' aiebat, * eoque 65
responsura tuo numquam est par fama labori.
Tene, ut ego accipiar laute, torquerier omni
sollicitudine districtum, ne panis adustus,
ne male conditum ius apponatur, ut omnes
praecincti recte pueri comptique ministrent! 7o
Adde hos praeterea casus, aulaea ruant si,
ut modo ; si patinam pede lapsus frangat agaso.
Sed convivatoris, uti ducis, ingenium res
adversae nudare solent, celare secundae.'
Nisidienus ad haec : * Tibi di quaecumque preceris 75
commoda dent! Ita vir bonus es convivaque comis:'
et soleas poscit.
57. maius: ?.e. a real danger, as
of the fall of the ceiling or house.
58. erigimur, ra//y. — Rufus :
cognomen of Nasidiemus. — posito
capite : i.e. in despair, in a man-
ner opposed to erigimur.
59. esset: imperfect, referring to
past time instead of the ordinary
pluperfect (Gr. § 3o8. a). This is
an extreme case of the usage, and
hardly to be paralleled, and it may
be the1 e£J:re colloquial.
6o. sapiens, /i/ée a philosopher,
perhaps with a shade of irony. The
absurdity consisted in the parasite's
treating the matteras an overwhelm-
ing calamity.
Tum in lecto quoque videres
64. suspendens, etc., a/ways a
scormful cymic, which agrees with
his contemptuous irony. Cf. I. 6. 5.
67. tene, etc.: cf. Ter. A/orm. II.
2. 25, a passage which Balatro must
have had in his mind.
72. agaso : î. e. a clumsy slave,
fit only for the stable.
74. nudare: i.e. only serve to
reveal the genius which in success
might be undiscovered.
75. tibi di, etc. : the host evi-
dently takes the jest in earnest.
77. soleas poscit : î. e. to go and
order the continuance of the ban-
quet. The shoes were taken off
upon reclining.
VIII. 57—92.] HORATI SERMONES.
157
stridere secreta divisos aure susurros.
H. Nullos his mallem ludos spectasse ; sed illa
redde, age, quae deinceps risisti. F. Vibidius dum
quaerit de pueris, num sit quoque fracta lagena,
8o
quod sibi poscenti non dantur pocula, dumque
ridetur fictis rerum Balatrone secundo,
Nasidiene, redis mutatae frontis, ut arte
emendatu-us foi tunam; deinde secuti 85
mazono, O pueri magno discerpta ferentes
membra gruis sparsi sale multo, non sine farre,
pinguibus et ficis pastum iecur anseris albae,
et leporum avolsos, ut multo suavius, armos,
quam si cum lumbis quis edit.
Tum pectore adusto go
vidimus et merulas poni et sine clune palumbes,
suavis res, si non causas narraret earum et
78. divisos, exc/amged, uttered
now to this side, now to that (cf.
Od. I. I 5. I 5). — secreta aure :
privately in the ear of one's neigh-
bor, i.e. they put their heads to-
gether and whisper.
79. 1udos : referring as well to
the sport on this occasion as to
public amusements in general. Cf.
the English, ** as good as a play.”
— mallem : Gr. § 3I I. b. — spec-
tasse : Gr. § 288. a. Rem.
8o. deinceps, meaet.
8I. quoque : ì.e. as well as what-
ever the hangings fell om.
83. ridetur: of course imper-
sonal. — fictis rerum (cf. II. 2. 25),
Àretended feszs, invented to cover
their laughter at Nasidienus.
84. Nasidiene : in a style of
apostrophe suggestive of Epic poe-
try. — mutatae frontis, zo/iz/, a
changed bearing; recovered from
his despair, and resolved to triumph
Over fortune by resolute endcavör.
— ut arte, etc. : apparently pro-
verbial. Cf. Ter. Adelph. IV. 7.
2I seq.
88. iecur: cf. the modern pdtè de
foie gr^ '. — anseris albae : a fe-
male and white, both details made
much of by the host, as of course
these would not appear in the liver.
89. armos: cf. II. 4. 44.
9o. edit: probably subjunctive.—
adusto : apparently broiled. There
is no reason to think of any want
of excellence in the cooking.
9 I. sine clune : doubtless a fine
touch. Cf., for a different fashion,
Gel/. I 5. 8.
92. suavis res, cλοῖce zwiamds
emozug/,. In strict grammar we
should have quae sauaves res essem?
si, but here the res is put in appo-
sition without a verb, and the sen-
tence proceeds as if the verb had
been used.
92. causas, etc. : î. e. the dinner
is spoiled by the details, because
158 HORATI SERMONES. [LIB. II. vIII. 93—95.
naturas dominus ; quem nos sic fugimus ulti,
ut nihil omnino gustaremus, velut illis
Canidia afflasset peior serpentibus Afris. 95
minutiæ of the art of the cuisine are
disgusting to the guests.
93. ulti: î. e. when the host is so
devoted to the culinary art, and so
proud of his dinmers, the worst they
cam do to him is to refuse to enjoy
his viands.
95. Canidia: the sorceress men-
tioned in Æpod. V., XVII. and Sat.
I. 8. — Afris: cf. Od. III. Io. I8.
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