6

89-90. parvoque potentem Fabricium] Caius Fabricius Cons. B.C. 282 and 278. The conqueror of Pyrrhus. The parvo potentem great in poverty,' refers to the stories of his frugal life on his farm, like his contemporary Dentatus who said that it was better to rule those who had gold than to have gold oneself. Serrane C. Atilius Regulus, Consul B.C. 257, defeated the Carthaginian fleet at the Liparæ Islands. Vergil here countenances the notion that his cognomen Serranus was given him to record the fact that he was sowing (serentem) when the news came to him that he was elected Consul. The etymology of the word, is however doubtful.

91-92. Fabii Quintus Fabius Maximus surnamed Cunctator from his success in baffling Hannibal by avoiding an engagement. unus qui nobis etc. is from the Annals of Ennius, and is also used by Ovid [F. 2, 242]

'Scilicet ut posses olim tu, Maxime, nasci

Cui res cunctando restituenda foret.'

and elsewhere much quoted.

93-98. Let Greeks and others excel in the fine arts: the Roman's work in the world is to conquer and rule.

spirantia aera] repeated from G. 3, 34, stabunt et Parii lapides spirantia signa. Cp. Macaulay's Lays.

'The stone that breathes and struggles,
The brass that seems to speak ;—
Such cunning they who dwell on high
Have given unto the Greek.'

93-94. mollius] 'more smoothly' ['with finer touch,' L. L.] vivos 'life-like.'

95-96. orabunt] 'plead.' describent radio map out with a measuring-rod.' meatus caeli' motions of the heavenly bodies.' surgentia sidera dicent 'predict the rising of the planets.' Vergil has enumerated in general terms the art of sculpture, of oratory, and the science of astronomy. Superiority in these he is willing to allow to the Greeks.

98-99. pacis imponere morem] 'to dictate the terms of peace,' and more than that 'to impose on the nations the rules of peace,' i.e. the rules which they are to obey during this peace. superbos 'rebellious.'

XXXV.

[The ceremonies observed in of Janus, which Vergil calls the thrown open by the consul in his of trumpets.

proclaiming war. The gates Temple of War,' are solemnly official robes, and to the sound

1. Hesperio in Latio] 'in primitive Latium,' when Italy 51 was called Hesperia. protinus 'in their turn,' one after another.'

2. coluere sacrum] 'observed as sacred.'

4. Getis] The Getae were a barbarous tribe of Dacia on the N. of the Danube, which formed the frontier of the empire in Vergil's day. Their incursions over the river especially when it was frozen are often described by Ovid, who at Tomi speaks of himself as 'inter Sauromatas Getasque.' They were among the most dangerous enemies of Rome at that time. Cp. Hor. Od. 4, 15, 17.

Custode rerum Caesare

Non qui profundum Danubium bibunt,
Edicta rumpent Julia; non Getae
Non Seres infidive Persae,

Non Tanain prope flumen orti.

manu] 'by force,' i.e. conciliation having failed.

5. Hyrcanisve Arabisve] Hyrcania was on the S. E. of the Caspian sea. The 'Arabs' stand generally for the East. seu trudere ad Indos 'or to push even as far as India.'

These

6. Parthosque reposcere signa] 'to demand back the standards from the Parthians,' i.c. the standards taken when Crassus and his army were destroyed at Carrhae B.C. 52. were afterwards restored to Augustus, a triumph of his prestige which the Augustan poets are never tired of recording.

9. vectes] μoxλoí, 'bars,' to go across the folding doors. 10. nec custos etc.] 'nor does the guardian Janus ever leave the threshold.' The gates of Janus are two gates in a Temple of War, opened in time of war, closed in time of peace. The building is usually spoken of as 'the temple of Janus,' but it seems that the temple had two doors which alone were properly sacred to Janus, not the entire temple.

11. ubi...pugnae 'when the decision of the senate for war is definitely fixed.' It seems difficult to explain the gen. pugnae except as governed by certus. The construction may be compared to certus esse sententiae (Quint. 4, 3, 8), for patribus sententia = patres, and pugnae sententiae a decision for

war.

12. Quirinali trabea] 'with the trabea of Romulus.' The trabea was a toga with horizontal stripes of purple, a royal robe it was believed of Romulus (Quirinus), assumed afterwards by the Consuls, and other officers. Cinctu Gabino 'with toga girded in the fashion of Gabii,' a peculiar mode of adjusting the toga, one end being thrown over the head, and the other passed round the waist. It is not known how it was connected with Gabii, 34, 18.

15. 'And brazen horns bray forth in hoarse assent.' Cp. Aen. 8, 2 et strepitu sonuerunt cornua rauco. conspirant 'breathe together,' i.e. there is a flourish of trumpets.

XXXVI.

[The story of the giant of the Aventine. One of the traditions of shepherd life when the Aventine was still in great part forest and pasture. Ovid [F. 1, 539] and Propertius [5, 9] have told the same story of Cacus Aventinae timor atque infamia silvae; which may be compared in some respects to the myth of the Sicilian monster shepherd, the Cyclops.]

1. Evander is telling the story to Aeneas. Evander came from Pallantium in Arcadia and founded a city Pallantium on the hill thence called the Palatine. He is pointing to the Aventine and the intervening Velabrum. A cave is still shown as that of Cacus near the Porta Trigemina. saxis suspensam ' overhanging with crags,' or 'with overhanging crags.'

2. ut] C. hesitates between translating ut, 'where,' or 'how.' Dr. K. suggests that it should be construed 'since the time when = ex quo. With this I agree. Ovid more than once uses ut in this sense [Tr. 4, 6, 19; 5, 10, 1]. It would then explain suspensam. Overhanging ever since the huge mass was rent and scattered wide, and the cave (montis domus) has

been standing tenantless, and the (falling) rocks brought down with them immense debris.' The difficulty of this is the present tense stat. The objection to take aspice ut remark how 'is that in this sense ut requires the subjunctive.

4. Ovid (F. 1, 156) proque domo longis spelunca recessibus 52 ingens Abdita vix ipsis invenienda feris.

5.

semihominis Caci facies dira] So Ov. dira viro facies 'the terrible face of the half-bestial Cacus.'

6-8. The monster like the Cyclops devours human flesh, and treats his victims as slaughtered beasts, fastening their skulls and bones over the door, as the heads of wild beasts were placed [Eur. Bacch. 1212.

'I would

Have Pentheus set a ladder against his house
And nail his head upon the pediments,

This lion's head the spoil of my own chace.']

ora. 'skulls.' Cp. Ov. F. 1, 558 Ora super postes affixaque brachia pendent Squalidaque humanis ossibus albet humus. pallida 'ghastly.'

9. illius] sc. Vulcan's. So Ovid says that he used fire against Hercules, patrias male fortis ad artes Confugit et flammas ore sonante vomit. According to Propertius he had three heads, and breathed out fire from each of them, per tria partitos qui dabat ora focos. magna mole with huge bulk.' Ovid corpus grande.

12.

maxumus ultor] 'that mightiest avenger,' i.c. Hercules who punished so many monsters.

13. Geryonae] Geryones of Erythea [a fabulous island in the West] was a monster with three bodies.

15. vallem amnemque] The low ground between the river and the Palatine, including the Forum Boarium and Velabrum.

6

18-19. praestanti corpore] of goodly size.' superante forma of eminent beauty,' abl. of quality with epithet, L.P. § 115.

53

25. Amphitryoniades] Amphitryon was Alcmenè's mortal husband, and thus putative father of Hercules stabulis 'from the stalls,' abl. of separation; L.P. § 123.

26-27. mugire.....impleri.....relinqui] historic infinitives; cp. 5, 5. L.P. § 140. Notes on Synt. vii. A. clamore = cum clamore 'noisily.'

29. custodita] 'though close kept.'

30-32. exarserat] 'blazed up.' C. says the pluperf. in past time equivalent to the instantaneous perf. in present. furiis abl. of manner 'furiously.' cursu 'at full speed.'

34. turbatum oculis] 'with terrified eyes,' abl. of respect cp. 29, 8.

37. arte paterna] 'with the smith's craft of his father' Vulcan, v. 9.

38. fultosque...postes] 'blocked up with its weight and pressed against the posts.' fultos the posts are supported by the weight of the rock let down between them.

39. furens animis] cp. 34. Tirynthus 'Hercules' from Tiryns near Argos, where he was said to have been brought up. 40. ora ferebat] 'turned his eyes.' accessum lustrans 'examining every possible means of access.'

45-46. dorso insurgens 'standing out on the ridge of the cavern,' cp. Hor. Sat. 2, 6, 69 praerupti nemoris dorso praecisis undique saxis 'with crags rising sheer on every side.' dirarum 'ill-omened.

48. dexter nitens] 'pushing it from the right.' The crag sloped to the left, and therefore was best pushed from the other side.

49. inde...impulit] 'then with a sudden push he hurled it down.'

51. dissultant ripae] 'the banks are dashed apart.'

55-56. regna pallida] 'the ghastly kingdoms,' L.L. dis invisa is from the Homeric τά τε στυγέουσι θεοί περ, 11. 20, 63. superque and from above' = desuper. [L. L. translate ' also.']