CARMEN XI. AD MERCURIUM. The poet, gazing on Lyde, a coy maiden, proof to the power of love, entreats Mercury to grant to him the sweetest melodies of the lyre, that, by their aid, he may melt her virgin heart. He then takes occasion to expatiate upon the power of the lyre in soothing the monsters of Tartarus and alleviating the tortures of the damned; and adverts specially to the punishment of the Danaïds, and the heroism evinced by Hypermnestra, who spared her husband Lynceus, and was therefore exempted from the doom of all her sisters. He then expresses a hope that Lyde, touched by this picture of perfect love, may lend an ear to his suit; but as if entranced in lyric enthusiasm, he continues the narrative of Hypermnestra to the end of the Ode, and does not resume the subject of Lyde at all. Nec loquax olim neque grata, nunc et Quae, velut latis equa trima campis, Carm. 11.-1 and 2. construe: nam Amphion docilis, te magistro, movit lapides canendo-nam, &c., the clause containing the reason of the sequel poetically put first, (comp. below v. 30: impiae-nam quid potuere majus? &c.; and in like manner after a vocative, Virg. A. 1, 65: Aeole - namque tibi divûm pater atque hominum rex, &c.) -As to Amphion, comp. below A. P. 394 sq. Dictus et Amphion, Thebanae conditor arcis, Saxa movere sono testudinis et prece blandâ Ducere, quo vellet. 3. lestudo, &c., see Excurs. IV. to C. 1, 5 10 1; perh. imitation of Sappho's verse: "Αγε δια χελύνη λέγε, φωνᾶσσα δὲ γίνεο. 4. callida, poetic. with the infin. resonare quae scite resonas, 'skilful to sound.' 5. loquax, in good sense canoraolim, once,' i. e. 'when not yet made vocal by chords'-grata, sc. hominibus. 6. divitum mensis amica, comp. above C. 1, 32, 13: dapibus supremi grata testudo Jovis, and Hom. Od. 17, 270. sq.: φόρμιγξ — ἣν ἄρα δαιτὶ θεοὶ ποίησαν ἑταίραν. 12. cruda expers. Tu potes tigres comitesque silvas Cerberus, quamvis furiale centum Quin et Ixion Tityosque vultu Audiat Lyde scelus atque notas Quae manent culpas etiam sub Orco. Perdere ferro. Una de multis face nuptiali CARM. 11.-17-20. in [ ] as spurious, some edd.-18. caput exeatque, 16. janitor aulae, (c. Plutonis), i. e. Cerberus; alluding to his having been charmed by the music of Orpheus, when he came to the inferior regions to recover his wife Eurydice. 20. ore trilingui, de tribus linguis triplicis oris, see above note to C. 2, 19, 31. 21. Ixion, comp. below A. P. 124: perfidus Ixion-Tityos, &c., see above C. 2, 14, 8 and 3, 4, 77. 22. urna, sc. Danaïdum, (from the foll. line). 26. lymphae, genit. dependent on · 15 20 25 30 inane, empty of water,' (comp. Cic. de Or. 1, 9, 37: Omnia nonne plena consiliorum, inania verborum videmus? and Ov. M. 2, 611: Corpus inane animae). 28. sera fata: poenas fatales, quae eis post mortem tandem impositae sunt. 30. quid majus (sc. scelus) potuêre (sc. committere)?-note the beautiful repetition of impiae and potuere in the foll. line. 33. una de multis, 'one out of the many'; thus de in partitive sense also in classic prose (comp. Cic. Mil. 24, 65: Splendide mendax et in omne virgo 35 'Surge,' quae dixit juveni marito, Surge, ne longus tibi somnus, unde 'Non times, detur: socerum et scelestas 40 Me pater saevis oneret catenis, 'I, pedes quo te rapiunt et aurae, 45 'Dum favet nox et Venus, i secundo a 50 'Omine et nostri memorem sepulcro CARMEN XIII. AD FONTEM BANDUSIAE. Dated 725-736. Horace describes, in glowing terms, the fountain of Bandusia, in honour of which he promises the sacrifice of a kid on the following day. It is supposed that this fountain was within the boundaries of the poet's Sabine farm, and had been so called by himself, from another fountain of the same name, about six miles from his birth-place, Venusia. O FONS Bandusiae, splendidior vitro, Cui frons turgida cornibus Primis et Venerem et proelia destinat; 5 CARMEN XIV. AD POPULUM ROMANUM. Dated A. U. C. 729 or 730. The poet joyfully anticipates the return of Augustus from his expedition against the Cantabrians and Asturians; compares the achievements of the Emperor with the labours of Hercules; proposes that the wife and sister of Augustus, accompanied by all the matrons, maidens, and youths of Rome, should go forth in solemn procession to welcome the conqueror of Spain and the ruler of the world; and concludes with an announcement of his own purpose to celebrate the event at home with all the festivities which were suited to the occasion. CARM. 14.-6. castis (inst. of justis) Bentl. conj.---divis (inst. of sacris), some Codd.-11. nominatis, some Codd.; inominatis, Bentl. conj. 5 10 tradunt operatum his sacris se abdidisse). 7. soror, i. e. Octavia. 8. supplice vittâ, poetic. =vittâ supplicantium, fillets worn during the performance of sacrifices, as a token of supplication,' comp. Virg. A. 4, 637: Tuque ipsa piâ tege tempora vittâ. 11 and 12. male ominatis (hiatus)— parcite verbis, the Greek évoqueîte, see above note to C. 3, 1, 2. |