Nam jejuna quidem clivosi glarea ruris Vix humiles apibus casias roremque ministrat. 214. Chelydris vix Et tophus scaber, et nigris exesa chelydris ministrant eas quoque Creta negant alios æquè serpentibus agros 215 Dulcem ferre cibum, et curvas præbere latebras. halat 217. Illa terra quæ ex- Quæ tenuem exhalat nebulam, fumosque volucres, 220 221. Illa terra intexet Illa tibi lætis intexet vitibus ulmos: 226. Nunc dicam quomodo possis cognoscere unam quamque terram, si requiras, an sit rara 229. Densa terra favet Cereri magis 233. Si arena deerunt ad replendum locum, uber erit rarum, aptiusque 225 Illa ferax oleæ est : illam experiêre colendo Salsa autem tellus, et quæ perhibetur amara, NOTES. 212. Nam jejuna glarea. Having mentioned the land best for grain, the poet here observes, that the land in which the dry gravel, jejuna glarea; or the rough rottenstone, scaber tophus; or the chalk stone, creta, abounds, will scarcely produce the herb casia, and consequently is unfit for grain: besides, it is the haunt of noxious reptiles and vermin. Rorem: in the sense of flores, says Heyne: quibus ros solet inesse. 215. Tophus scaber, &c. Heyne takes tophus scaber and creta exera as nominatives to negant. 220. Scabie, rubigine: with scurf-with rust. Ferrum: the plough-share. 221. Intexet: will entwine--embrace. Implicabit, says Ruæus. 223. Facilem pecori: to be good for pasture, and patient of the bending plough— will bear frequent tillage. 224. Capua: a city of Campania, surrounded by a fertile country. Its inhabitants were celebrated for their wealth and luxury. It took its name from Capys, a companion of Æneas; but Strabo derives it from caput, because it was the chief city in that part of Italy. no. 230 235 240 225. Ora: in the sense of regio. Jugo Vesevo: the mountain Vesuvius, in Campania, near Naples, well known as a volcaAcerris: Acerra was an ancient city of Campania, which the river Clanius, by its frequent inundations, almost depopulated. Hence the propriety of non æquus, not just, or kind-destructive. 227. Rara. Rarus, loose, light, is the opposite of spissus; and in the present case, of densus. 228. Baccho-Lyao. These both by meton. are here put for the vine. 230. Antè: in the sense of primùm. 231. Demitti: in the sense of defodi. Puteum: in the sense of foveam. In solido: in the solid ground. 234. Uber: in the sense of solum, vel humus. 236. Expecta cunctantes: expect hard clods, and large tough ridges. 239. Ea nec mansuescit: that land neither mellows by ploughing, nor preserves its kind to the vine, nor their own names to the fruit. The vine and fruit degenerate, and lose their original flavor and qualities when planted in such a soil. Infelix: in the sense of inapta, vel infœcunda. Tale dabit specimen. Tu spisso vimine qualos, Pinguis item quæ sit tellus, hoc denique pacto 245 250 Quæ gravis est, ipso tacitam se pondere prodit; His animadversis, terram multò antè memento At si quos haud ulla viros vigilantia fugit: NOTES. 242. Deripe: in the sense of cape, vel sume. Qualos: baskets made of thick wicker. 243. Huc: hither-into the basket. Malus ager: the earth of bad quality. Unda: in the sense of aqua. 244. Eluctabitur: in the sense of effluet, vel elabitur. 246. Sapor the taste or relish, denoting the quality of any thing. It differs from sensus, which here means the sensation or effect produced on the mouth by the act of tasting. Indicium a discovery of the quality of the land. 247. Tentantûm: in the sense of gustantium. Tristia: in the sense of salsa, vel 256 261 265 251. Humida terra alit majores herbas, ipsa que est lætior justo : 254. Terra, quæ est gravis, quæque est levis, prodit se tacitam 256. Et quisquis color sit unicuique terræ. 262. Optima arva sun, è putri solo 266. Exquirunt locum similem illi, ubi prima seges coquere: to dry-bake. The poet here advises to let the land lie exposed both to the heat of the sun during the summer, and to the north wind during winter; that is, for a whole year. The antè in the following line appears entirely expletive. Some have proposed to read in room of it, atque, which would be preferable, if there were authority for the change. Heyne seems to approve of atque. 261. Ostendere: in the sense of exponere. Supinatas: turned toward, or lying exposed to. 264. Labefacta jugera: his loosened acres -mellowing under the instruments of husbandry. Curant: in the sense of efficient : will render the ground soft and mellow. 265. Si quos: some men. 267. Seges: a nursery, or place where trees are first planted or reared, till they be of sufficient size to be transplanted. In this passage, the meaning appears to be, that those who would have good orchards, should pay a particular attention to the soil, where they intend to plant the trees, and select a soil of the like kind for the nursery; from which (ex quo) afterward the trees are to be taken and transplanted; lest when so transplanted, they should not readily un with the earth. Not only so, they Mutatam ignorent subitò ne semina matrem. Quin etiam cœli regionem in cortice signant; 270. Ut restituant Ut, quo quæque modo steterit, quâ parte calores 270 unamquamque eò modo, Austrinos tulerit, quæ terga obverterit axi, quo quæque steterit, quà Restituant. Adeò in teneris consuescere multum est. parte Collibus, an plano melius sit ponere vites, Quære priùs. Si pinguis agros metabere campi, 276. Sin eligas solum Sin tumulis acclive solum, collesque supinos, acclive tumulis 284. Omnia intervalla viarum sint dimensa Indulge ordinibus: nec seciùs omnis in unguem NOTES. carefully observe what particular side stood toward the several parts of heaven, that they might be placed, every one in the saine manner-on what side they sustained the summer heat, and on what side the winter cold. Seges: in the sense of seminarium, says Heyne. Digesta: arranged in rows. Feratur: in the sense of transferatur. 268. Semina: young plants, or trees. Matrem: the ground into which they are transplanted. 271. Axi: in the sense of septentrioni. 272. Consuescere in teneris: to be accustomed in their tender age avails so muchhas so much influence over them. Some copies have à teneris. Annis is understood. 274. Metabere: if you shall lay out for planting. Ruæus interprets it by eligas. 275. Densa: for densè, an adv. Bacchus non segnior: the vine will not be less fruitful in a thick and rich soil. Some take in denso simply for densè, and render it thus: the vine will not be less fruitful in a rich soil, if planted thickly. In this case, ubere is taken for richness or fertility of soil. This appears to be the opinion of Heyne. Ruæus connects denso with ubere. In this case, denso must be taken in the sense of pingui, vel spisso; and ubere in the sense of solo. 276. Supinos: sloping-descending gradually. 277. Indulge ordinibus: indulge in your rows-plant your vines farther apart. Nec secus: also likewise; porrò, says Heyne. 276 280 285 290 278. Omnis via, &c. Every space, or avenue, should square exactly, the trees being placed in a path or line cut across-every space should exactly form a square, the rows of trees being planted at equal distances, and at right angles to each other In unguem: exactly-to a tittle. 281. Acies directa: the lines are formed the battalions are marshalled. Acies an army in order of battle; agmen : in or der of march; exercitus: in order of exer cise. Fluctuat: in the sense of coruscat. 282. Renidenti ære: with gleaming brass, Ere in the sense of areis armis. 283. Dubius: doubtful-uncertain; not knowing on which side of the embattled armies the victory will fall. 284. Omnia sint, &c. All the spaces should be measured out in equal proportions. Davidson supposes intervalla, or a word of the like import, to agree with omnia, and to govern viarum. Rumus connects viarum with numeris, and supposes it to be governed by that word. But to take omnia piarum in the sense of omnes viæ, is more simple; and of this construction we have many examples in Virgil. Opaca locorum: dark places. Æn. ii. 725. Opaca viarum: dark ways, or passages. En. vi. 633. 288. Fastigia: in the sense of profunditas. Scrobibus: to the trenches-holes. 290. Alliùs. The common reading is altiùs; but Heyne, Heinsius, and some others, have altior. Esculus imprimis, quæ quantùm vert.ce ad auras Summa pete, aut summas defringe ex arbore plantas, Nec tibi tam prudens quisquam persuadeat auctor NOTES. 292. Tartara tendit: Tartarus, mas. in the sing. neu. in the plu. one of the regions of hell. Here, as the poets say, the wicked and impious are punished. Ixion, Tityus, Tantalus, Sysyphus, and the Danaïdes, were sentenced to this place. The poet advises to commit the vine to a light furrow, just below the surface of the earth; but to put the tree, and especially the Esculus, deep in the earth, that they may take root better and more firmly. The vine properly belongs neither to the species of the tree, nor to that of the shrub; but is between both: tertium quiddam, quod nec arborem, nec fruticem propriè dixerim, says Columella. See En. iv. 445. 294. Multos per annos. Heyne reads, multos nepotes. He observes that Heinsius, and some others, read the same. Per annos, is the general reading, and appears to be the easiest. If nepotes be read, it must be taken in the sense of ætates, vel ava; but that is expressed in the following line, by the words, multa sæcula virûm. 295. Vincit: in the sense of superat. 299. Neve pete summa: neither seek the topmost shoots, nor break off the topmost scions from the tree. The advice which the poet gives, is: that in propagating trees, whether by grafting, 301 305 310 316 297. Ipsa media inter suos ramos sustinet 312. Ubi hoc accidit, tum vites non valent reverti à stirpe or otherwise, you should not take the topmost shoots of the tree, but those that are nearer the root; for they will grow and flourish better, having more strength in them, and having already contracted a fondness for the earth-tantus amor terræ. Semina: in the sense of surculos, vel plantas. 300. Defringe. Heyne reads destringe. 302. Neve insere, &c. Nor plant the trunks of the wild olive among your vines. Inter vites, is understood. 306. Secutus: increasing more and more, it reigns victorious. 308. Ruit: in the sense of emittit, vel erigit. Nemus: in the sense of vinetum. 310. A vertice: from on high; or, accord ing to Servius, from the north. Desuper, vel de cœlo, says Heyne; à septentrione, says Rumus. 312. Ubi hoc: when this happens-when your vineyards are burnt, your vines cannot shoot forth again from the root; nor, if they be cut, can they do it, and spring up such as they were before. They will be entirely destroyed, and nothing but the barren wild olive will survive and remain. Reverti: in the sense of renasci. 317. Rura: in the sense of arva. Semine jacto: in the sense of surculo defosso 323. Adeò ver est utile frondi nemorum, ver est Concretam patitur radicem affigere terræ. 331. Omnibus arvis 336. Non crediderim Cùm primùm lucem pecudes hausere, virûmque Ferrea progenies duris caput extulit arvis, Nec res hunc teneræ possent perferre laborem, NOTES. 319. Rubenti: blooming-blushing; in the sense of purpureo. 320. Candida avis: the Ciconia, or stork. So esteemed was this bird on account of its destroying serpents and noxious reptiles, that in Thessaly, Pliny informs us, it was a capital crime for any person to kill one; hence, invisa longis colubris. 325. Tum omnipotens pater: then almighty father Æther descends into the bosom of his joyous spouse in fructifying showers, and great himself, mingling with her great body, nourishes all her offspring. These lines are extremely beautiful, as well as this whole description of spring. The Æther, or air, by the poets, is frequently called Jupiter, on account, perhaps, of its great utility, and its necessity to life and vegetation; and because of the intimate connexion between the surrounding air and the earth, the poet represents the latter as Juno, calling it the spouse of Jove. 328. Avia virgulta: the sequestered woods, or thickets. Avius is evidently compounded of the Greek alpha, negativum, and via, a way. We meet with several instances of the like composition in the Latin language: as demens, of de and mens, amens, &c. 331. Arva laxant, &c. The fields open their bosom to the warm breezes of the 320 325 330 335 340 zephyrs. This is extremely beautiful, and highly poetical. 332. Germina. The usual reading is gramina. Heyne reads germina. Burmanus, Martyn, Vossius, and some others, do the same. It is evidently the better. 340. Cum primùm, &c. This is an allusion to the deluge, which, the poets say, happened in the reign of Deucalion, king of Thessaly, of which he and his wife Pyrrha were the only survivors. Being grieved at the general destruction of men, they were directed by an oracle to cast behind them understood to be stones, and they should the bones of their great mother, which they instantly spring up into men. See Ecl. vi. 41. 341. Duris arvis: stony fields. Ferrea: because they sprang up all armed and equipped for war. 343. Res teneræ. It is not certain whe. ther the poet here speaks of spring at the creation of the world, or returns to his description of spring in general. In the for mer case, res tenera will be the tender and infant creation; in the latter, the tender productions of nature. Dr. Trapp takes it in this latter case, and understands by teneræ, frail, an epithet, says he, which was, and ever will be, proper for all sublunary things. Ruæus seems to take it in the for |