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Transcriber’s Note:

Erroneous references to c. m. 53 in the Index have been changed to c. m.
52 (there is no c. m. 53).

Volume 1 is available as Project Gutenberg ebook number 51443.




                      THE LOEB CLASSICAL LIBRARY

                               EDITED BY

                        E. CAPPS, PH.D., LL.D.
                          T. E. PAGE, LITT.D.
                        W. H. D. ROUSE, LITT.D.




                               CLAUDIAN
                                  II




                               CLAUDIAN

                    WITH AN ENGLISH TRANSLATION BY
                           MAURICE PLATNAUER

           SOMETIME HONORARY SCHOLAR OF NEW COLLEGE, OXFORD

                ASSISTANT MASTER AT WINCHESTER COLLEGE

                            IN TWO VOLUMES

                                  II

                       LONDON: WILLIAM HEINEMANN
                     NEW YORK: G. P. PUTNAM’S SONS
                                MCMXXII




CONTENTS OF VOLUME II


                                                                      PAGE
  ON STILICHIO’S CONSULSHIP--

    BOOK II                                                              3

    BOOK III: PREFACE                                                   39

    BOOK III                                                            43

  PANEGYRIC ON THE SIXTH CONSULSHIP OF THE
  EMPEROR HONORIUS (A.D. 404)--

    PREFACE                                                             71

    THE PANEGYRIC                                                       75

  THE GOTHIC WAR--

    PREFACE                                                            125

    THE GOTHIC WAR                                                     127

  SHORTER POEMS                                                        175

  RAPE OF PROSERPINE--

    BOOK I: PREFACE                                                    293

    BOOK I                                                             293

    BOOK II: PREFACE                                                   315

    BOOK II                                                            319

    BOOK III                                                           345

  INDEX OF POEMS                                                       379

  INDEX OF PROPER NAMES                                                383




       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 1

CLAUDIAN

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 2

CLAUDII CLAUDIANI CARMINA

DE CONSULATU STILICHONIS

LIBER SECUNDUS

(XXII.)


    Hactenus armatae laudes: nunc qualibus orbem
    moribus et quanto frenet metuendus amore,
    quo tandem flexus trabeas auctore rogantes
    induerit fastisque suum concesserit annum,
    mitior incipiat fidibus iam Musa remissis.                           5

    Principio magni custos dementia mundi,
    quae Iovis incoluit zonam, quae temperat aethram
    frigoris et flammae medio, quae maxima natu
    caelicolum. nam prima chaos Clementia solvit
    congeriem miserata rudem vultuque sereno                            10
    discussis tenebris in lucem saecula fudit.
    haec dea pro templis et ture calentibus aris
    te fruitur posuitque suas hoc pectore sedes.
    haec docet ut poenis hominum vel sanguine pasci
    turpe ferumque putes; ut ferrum, Marte cruentum,                    16
    siccum pace feras; ut non infensus alendis

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 3




THE POEMS OF CLAUDIAN

ON STILICHO’S CONSULSHIP

BOOK II

(XXII.)


Thus far the warrior’s praise! Now let my gentler Muse relax the
strings and tell by what virtues he governs the world, tempering fear
with love, say what counsel moved him at last to assume those consular
robes that cried out to him, and bestowed on our annals a year named
after himself.

In the beginning Love[1] was the guardian of this vast universe, she
who dwelt in the sphere of Jove, who attempers the sky ’twixt cold and
heat, who is eldest of the immortals. For Love, pitying the elemental
confusion, first disentangled Chaos; with a smile she scattered the
darkness and bathed the world in light. She dwelleth now not in temples
nor by altars warm with incense but in thy heart wherein she has made
her home. Taught by her thou accountest it cruel and barbarous to
batten on suffering and human slaughter; the sword that drips blood in
war thou wearest unstained in peace;

    [1] Claudian seems to have in his mind partly the Epicurean
    doctrine of ἔρως and partly the personification of the _Clementia
    Caesaris_, well known as a legend on so many Roman coins. See,
    also, for _Clementia_ as a goddess, Claud. xvii. 166, and Stat.
    _Theb._ xii. 481 _et sqq._

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 4

    materiem praestes odiis; ut sontibus ultro
    ignovisse velis, deponas ocius iram
    quam moveas, precibus numquam implacabilis obstes,
    obvia prosternas prostrataque more leonum                           20
    despicias, alacres ardent qui frangere tauros,
    transiliunt praedas humiles. hac ipse magistra
    das veniam victis, hac exorante calores
    horrificos et quae, numquam nocitura, timentur
    iurgia contentus solo terrore coerces                               25
    aetherii patris exemplo, qui cuncta sonoro
    concutiens tonitru Cyclopum spicula differt
    in scopulos et monstra maris nostrique cruoris
    parcus in Oetaeis exercet fulmina silvis.
      Huic divae germana Fides eademque sorori                          30
    corde tuo delubra tenens sese omnibus actis
    inserit. haec docuit nullo livescere fuco,
    numquam falsa loqui, numquam promissa morari;
    invisos odisse palam, non virus in alto
    condere, non laetam speciem praemittere fraudi,                     35
    sed certum mentique parem componere vultum;
    occulto saevire vetat, prodesse remittit.
    haec et amicitias longo plus tempore firmat
    mansuroque adamante ligat; nec mobile mutat
    ingenium, parvae strepitu nec vincula noxae                         40
    dissolvi patitur, nec fastidire priorem
    inlicitur veniente novo. benefacta tenere,
    respuere offensas facilis, pariterque minoris
    officii magnique memor superare laborat

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 5

though angered thou feedest with no fuel the flame of hatred; thou
forgivest the guilty even before they ask, thou layest aside thy wrath
more readily than thou art moved to wrath, thou never turnest a deaf
ear to prayers, all who oppose thee thou overthrowest, but deignest not
to touch them when overthrown, like a lion who lusts to rend in pieces
the fierce bull, but passes by the cowering prey. At her bidding thou
extendest pardon to the conquered; at her prayer thou refrainest the
dread fires of thine anger and those threats, not the less terrible for
being unfulfilled; it is enough for thee to inspire awe, even as the
heavenly Father who, shaking the world with his loud thunder, hurls the
bolts of the Cyclops upon rocks and sea-monsters and, sparing the blood
of man, expends his lightnings on the forests of Oeta.

Good Faith too, Love’s sister, has made her shrine in thy heart and
joins herself to all thine actions. She has taught thee to practise no
hypocrisy, never to speak falsehood, never to postpone the fulfilment
of thy promises; to hate openly those thou hatest, and not to hide the
poison of resentment in thy heart nor let a false smile mask treachery
but to make thy countenance the sure mirror of thy mind. She gainsayeth
secret vengeance but encourageth secret benefits. She strengthens
friendships also, that grow more firm by lapse of time and binds them
with chains of lasting adamant; not hers is the fickle change of mood,
nor does she permit close ties to be broken by the rumour of some
petty injury, nor is she lured to scorn the old friend when a new one
comes. Mindful of past benefits, quick to forget wrongs, she remembers
services alike small or great and strives to outdo

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 6

    utque hostes armis, meritis sic vincit amicos.                      45
    haec fovet absentes, haec longe sola remotis
    consulit, haec nullis avidam rumoribus aurem
    pandit, ut ignarum numquam laesura clientem
    insidiosa tuos alienent murmura sensus.
      Nec vivis adnexus amor meminisse sepultos                         50
    desinit; in prolem transcurrit gratia patrum.
    hac tu Theodosium, tenuit dum sceptra, colebas,
    hac etiam post fata colis; nec pignora curas
    plus tua quam natos, dederat quos ille monendos
    tutandosque tibi. iustos nimiumque fideles                          55
    fama putat, qui, cum possint commissa negare,
    maluerint nullo violati reddere quaestu:
    at Stilicho non divitias aurique relictum
    pondus, sed geminos axes tantumque reservat
    depositum teneris, quantum sol igneus ambit.                        60
    quid non intrepidus credas, cui regia tuto
    creditur?
              Hoc clipeo munitus Honorius altum
    non gemuit patrem vitaeque et lucis in ipso
    limine, contemptus numquam, dat iura subactis
    gentibus et secum sentit crevisse triumphos.                        65
    quem tu sic placida formas, sic mente severa,
    ut neque desidiae tradas, dum pronus ad omne
    quod libet obsequeris, nec contra nixus ovantem
    confringas animum: secreto consona regno
    ceu iuvenem doceas, moles quid publica poscat:                      70
    ceu sanctum venerere senem patriisque gubernes
    imperium monitis; dominum summissus adores;
    obsequiis moderere ducem, pietate parentem.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 7

them, overcoming friends with devotion as an enemy with arms. She
safeguards the absent and is the sole protector of those far away; she
opens not a greedy ear to rumours, so that never does the stealthy
whisper that would injure some unsuspecting client estrange thy
sympathies.

Nor does the love that clings to the living forget the dead, and the
gratitude a father earned is paid to his children. This kept thee loyal
to Theodosius while yet he wielded the sceptre, loyal, too, after his
death; nor carest thou more for thine own offspring than for the sons
he entrusted to thy guidance and protection. Just and most faithful
does Fame account those, who, though they might deny a trust, have
chosen rather to fulfil it, unpolluted by greed of gain; but it is not
riches, not a huge heritage of gold that Stilicho holds in trust for
the young heirs, but two hemispheres and all that is embraced within
the sun’s fiery orbit. What wouldst thou not fearlessly entrust to him
to whom a kingdom is entrusted safely?

Defended by this buckler Honorius did not mourn his noble sire, and
on life’s very threshold, ne’er scorned by any, he dictates laws to
conquered races and sees his triumphs increase with his years. Him thou
dost seek to shape as with kindly so with severe mind; neither to sloth
dost thou deliver him by a ready yielding to all his wishes, nor by
opposing dost thou crush his eager spirit: as a youth thou teachest him
in secret a king’s lesson--his duty to his people; as a reverend senior
thou payest him honour and governest the empire at a father’s bidding;
to thy lord thou givest humble worship; thou guidest thy master with
obedience, thy sire

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 8

    hinc fuit ut primos in coniuge disceret ignes
    ordirique virum non luxuriante iuventa,                             75
    sed cum lege tori, casto cum foedere vellet.
    principe tu felix genero: felicior ille
    te socero.
                Fratrem levior nec cura tuetur
    Arcadium; nec, si quid iners atque impia turba
    praetendens proprio nomen regale furori                             80
    audeat, adscribis iuveni. discordia quippe
    cum fremeret, numquam Stilicho sic canduit ira,
    saepe lacessitus probris gladiisque petitus,
    ut bello furias ultum, quas pertulit, iret
    inlicito causamque daret civilibus armis:                           85
    cuius fulta fide mediis dissensibus aulae
    intemeratorum stabat reverentia fratrum.
    quin et Sidonias chlamydes et cingula bacis
    aspera gemmatasque togas viridesque smaragdo
    loricas galeasque redundantes hyacinthis                            90
    gestatosque patri capulis radiantibus enses
    et vario lapidum distinctas igne coronas
    dividis ex aequo, ne non augusta supellex
    ornatusque pares geminis heredibus essent.
    mittitur et miles, quamvis certamine partes                         95
    iam tumeant. hostem muniri robore mavis
    quam peccare fidem: permittis iusta petenti
    idque negas solum, cuius mox ipse repulsa
    gaudeat et quidquid fuerat deforme mereri.
      Omnes praeterea, puro quae crimina pellunt                       100
    ore, deae iunxere choros unoque receptae

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 9

with love. Hence it was that he knew not passion before matrimony and
preferred to vindicate his manhood not in a youth of debauchery, but
in the chaste bonds of legal wedlock. Blessed art thou in having an
emperor for a son-in-law; more blessed he with thee for father.

Care no less tender watched over Honorius’ brother, Arcadius. Rightly
thou ascribest not to that youth the outrages of the feeble, vicious
mob that seeks to screen its own mad folly behind the name of a king.
Nay, even when discord raged never did Stilicho so burn with anger,
though oft assailed by insult, oft attacked with the sword, that he
sought to avenge the frenzy he endured by unholy war and give a handle
to civil strife; stayed on his loyalty, mid all the factions of a
court, the hallowed friendship of those brothers stood inviolate. Nay
more, thou dividedst equally with him Sidonian cloaks, belts studded
with pearls, jewelled togas, breastplates thick with green emeralds,
helmets flashing with sapphires, swords with gleaming handles thy sire
had wielded, crowns bright with the glint of manifold jewels, that
both might be equal heirs of their imperial sire’s rich furniture and
apparel. Thou didst send soldiers to Byzantium also, though civil
strife was already raising its head. Rather wouldst thou reinforce a
foe than fail thy pledge; all that he fairly asks thou grantest and
refusest only that the withholding of which he himself will shortly
approve, and that to obtain which were shameful.

Moreover, all the virtues whose pure aspect puts all wickedness to
flight live conjoined in thee and, dwelling within thine heart, aid
thee in the

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 10

    pectore diversos tecum cinguntur in usus.
    Iustitia utilibus rectum praeponere suadet
    communesque sequi leges iniustaque numquam
    largiri sociis. durum Patientia corpus                             105
    instruit, ut nulli cupiat cessisse labori;
    Temperies, ut casta petas; Prudentia, ne quid
    inconsultus agas; Constantia, futtile ne quid
    infirmumque geras. procul importuna fugantur
    numina, monstriferis quae Tartarus edidit antris:                  110
    ac primam scelerum matrem, quae semper habendo
    plus sitiens patulis rimatur faucibus aurum,
    trudis Avaritiam; cuius foedissima nutrix
    Ambitio, quae vestibulis foribusque potentum
    excubat et pretiis commercia pascit honorum,                       115
    pulsa simul. nec te gurges corruptior aevi
    traxit ad exemplum, qui iam firmaverat annis
    crimen et in legem rapiendi verterat usum.
    denique non dives sub te pro rure paterno
    vel laribus pallet; non insidiator oberrat                         120
    facturus quemcumque reum. non obruta virtus
    paupertate latet. lectos ex omnibus oris
    evehis et meritum, non quae cunabula, quaeris,
    et qualis non unde satus. sub teste benigno
    vivitur; egregios invitant praemia mores.                          125
    hinc priscae redeunt artes; felicibus inde
    ingeniis aperitur iter despectaque Musae
    colla levant, opibusque fluens et pauper eodem
    nititur ad fructum studio, cum cernat uterque
    quod nec inops iaceat probitas nec inertia surgat                  130
    divitiis.
              Nec te iucunda fronte fefellit

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                              Page 11

manifold businesses of life. Justice teaches thee to prefer the right
to the useful, to obey the general laws of mankind and never to enrich
thy friends at other’s cost. Patience strengthens thy body so that it
seeks never to yield to toil. Temperance guides thee to chaste desires.
Prudence will have thee do nought without forethought, Constancy nought
without decision and firm purpose. The deadly vices which Tartarus
sends up from his monstrous abyss fly far from thee; but first and
foremost thou banishest Avarice, mother of crimes, greedy for more the
more she possesses, searching ever open-mouthed for gold; with her
thou drivest out her most foul nurse, Ambition, who watches at the
gate of the powerful and haunts their dwelling-places, cherishing the
sale of honours for gold. This age’s more turbid stream of corruption
has not drawn thee to follow its examples--corruption which had with
lapse of time established crime and turned the custom of rapine into a
law. Beneath thy rule the rich tremble not for the safety of ancestral
lands or houses; no informer stalks the world set on making no matter
whom his victim. Virtue suffers no eclipse by poverty. Thou exaltest
men of all countries, asking what are their merits not their place of
birth, what their character not whence their origin. A generous prince
takes note of our life; rewards allure into the ways of virtue. Hence
it comes that the arts of old flourish once more; the path to fortune
is open to genius, while poesy again raises her despised head. Rich and
poor strive with equal zeal towards their ends, for both see that, as
poverty cannot depress merit, so riches cannot elevate incapacity.

Fair-fronted wantonness deceives thee not, wantonness,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 12

    luxuries, praedulce malum, quae dedita semper
    corporis arbitriis hebetat caligine sensus
    membraque Circaeis effeminat acrius herbis,
    blanda quidem vultus, sed qua non taetrior ulla                    135
    interius: fucata genas et amicta dolosis
    inlecebris torvos auro circumlinit hydros.
    illa voluptatum multos innexuit hamis:
    te numquam conata capit. non prava libido
    stupris advigilat; non tempora somnus agendi                       140
    frustratur; nullo citharae convivia cantu,
    non pueri lasciva sonant. quis cernere curis
    te vacuum potuit? quis tota mente remissum
    aut indulgentem dapibus, ni causa iuberet
    laetitiae? non indecores aeraria lassant                           145
    expensae; parvo non improba littera libro
    absentum condonat opes. a milite parcus
    diligeris; neque enim neglectas pace cohortes
    tunc ditas, cum bella fremunt. scis nulla placere
    munera, quae metuens illis, quos spreverat, offert                 150
    serus et incassum servati prodigus auri.
    antevenis tempus non expectantibus ultro
    munificus mensaeque adhibes et nomine quemque
    compellas clari, sub te quod gesserat olim,
    admonitum facti, figendaque sensibus addis                         155
    verba, quibus magni geminatur gratia nodi.[2]
      Nec, si quid tribuas, iactatum saepius idem
    exprobrare soles nec, quos promoveris, alto
    turgidus adloqueris fastu nec prospera flatus

    [2] I retain Birt’s _nodi_ (VPTI), but _doni_ (V2 and the other MSS.)
    is very tempting.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 13

that sweet curse, which surrendering to the arbitrament of the body
dulls the wits with darkness, enervating the limbs with bane more
deadly than that of Circe. Fair, indeed, is her face but none is fouler
within; dyed are her cheeks; clothed about is she with treacherous
lures, and deadly vipers hide them in her golden hair. Many hath she
caught with the bait of pleasure, thee, though often has she tried,
she has never ensnared. No lust bids thee wake for adultery’s sake,
nor does sleep cheat the hours of toil. Neither the strains of the
lyre nor the wanton song of boys accompany thy repast. Has any seen
thee free from care, thy mind entirely at rest, or indulging in the
banquet unless some public rejoicing commanded? No shameful expenditure
strains the resources of the treasury, no pitiless missive in a tiny
roll disposes of the property of the absent. Though thrifty thou art
beloved of the army, for thou neglectest not thy soldiers in peace, and
dost not only enrich them when war is toward. Thou knowest that belated
gifts, offered in fear to those hitherto scorned, earn no gratitude:
’tis but a useless flinging away of gold as uselessly hoarded. Thou
preventest thy soldier’s needs and art generous over and above their
expectations; thou callest them to thy board and addressest each by
his name, mindful of all the brave deeds ever done by each beneath thy
banners. To thy gifts thou addest praises that will ever be remembered,
whereby the grace of your close bond is doubled.

When bountiful thou dost not also turn the bounty into a reproach, nor
dost thou address those whom thou hast advanced with the language of
disdainful patronage; nor yet does prosperity make thee

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 14

    attollunt nimios. quin ipsa Superbia longe                         160
    discessit, vitium rebus sollemne secundis
    virtutumque ingrata comes. contingere passim
    adfarique licet. non inter pocula sermo
    captatur, pura sed libertate loquendi
    seria quisque iocis nulla formidine miscet.                        165
    quem videt Augusti socerum regnique parentem,
    miratur conviva parem, cum tanta potestas
    civem lenis agat. te doctus prisca loquentem,
    te matura senex audit, te fortia miles                             169
    adspersis salibus, quibus haud Amphiona quisquam
    praeferat Aonios meditantem carmine muros
    nec velit Orpheo migrantes pectine silvas.

    Hinc amor, hinc veris et non fallacibus omnes
    pro te solliciti votis; hinc nomen ubique
    plausibus, auratis celebrant hinc ora figuris.                     175
    quae non incudes streperent, quae flamma vacaret
    fabrilis, quantis fluerent fornacibus aera
    effigies ductura tuas, quis devius esset
    angulus aut regio quae non pro numine vultus
    dilectos coleret, talem ni semper honorem                          180
    respueres? decus hoc rapiat, quem falsa timentum
    munera decipiunt, qui se diffidit amari.
    hoc solus sprevisse potest, qui iure meretur.

    Undique legati properant generique sub ore
    in tua centenas optant praeconia voces.                            185
    grates Gallus agit, quod limite tutus inermi
    et metuens hostile nihil nova culmina totis

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 15

puffed up. Nay, pride itself is far removed from thee, pride, a vice
so familiar in success, ungracious attendant on the virtues. All, no
matter when or where, may meet and address thee. Talk over the wine is
not watched, but each guest, at liberty to say just what he pleases,
mingles grave converse with gay and fears not for his words. Each
marvels to find an equal in the emperor’s father-in-law and the father
of his country, when one so powerful acts the citizen so graciously.
With the learned thou discoursest of antiquity, with the aged of
experience, with the soldier of valiant deeds, and dost mingle thy talk
with such pleasant wit that none would rather hear the strains whereby
Amphion built the walls of Thebes or Orpheu’s lute drew the woods to
follow him.

Hence all love thee, all anxiously pray heaven for thee with no
feigned intercession, all shout applause at the mention of thy name
and reproduce thy form in gilded statues. What anvil should not ring,
what forge be idle, from what vast furnaces should bronze not flow
that is to shape thine image? What corner of the world, what region so
remote but should worship thy beloved countenance as divine,--hadst
thou not always refused such honour? Nay, let him snatch at such glory
whom hollow gifts inspired by fear can beguile and who despairs of a
people’s love. He who in truth deserves can alone afford to despise
them.

Embassies arrive from every quarter and in the presence of thy
son-in-law pray for a hundred voices to herald thy renown. The Gallic
envoy gives thee thanks for that, safe from attack though no legion
guards his frontier, and fearing no hostile

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 16

    aedificat ripis et saevum gentibus amnem
    Thybridis in morem domibus praevelat amoenis.
    hinc Poeni cumulant laudes, quod rura tyranno                      190
    libera possideant; hinc obsidione solutus
    Pannonius potorque Savi, quod clausa tot annis
    oppida laxatis ausus iam pandere portis
    rursum cote novat nigras rubigine falces
    exesosque situ cogit splendere ligones                             195
    agnoscitque casas et collibus oscula notis
    figit et impresso glaebis non credit aratro,
    exsectis,[3] inculta dabant quas saecula, silvis
    restituit terras et opacum vitibus Histrum
    conserit et patrium vectigal solvere gaudet,                       200
    inmunis qui clade fuit. te sospite fas est
    vexatum laceri corpus iuvenescere regni.
    sub tot principibus quaecumque amisimus olim,
    tu reddis. solo poterit Stilichone medente
    crescere Romanum vulnus tectura cicatrix;                          205
    inque suos tandem fines redeunte colono
    Illyricis iterum ditabitur aula tributis.
      Nec tamen humano cedit caeleste favori
    iudicium: cingunt superi concordibus unum
    praesidiis hostesque tuos aut litore produnt                       210
    aut totum oppositi claudunt fugientibus aequor
    aut in se vertunt furiis aut militis ense

    [3] Birt suggests _exsectisque_.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 17

incursion, he builds new dwelling-places along the banks of the Rhine
and fringes the river, famed once for the savagery of its tribes, with
houses as pleasant as those by Tiber’s stream. Here Carthaginians
crown thy praise, because they possess their lands delivered from
the tyrant’s rule; there the Pannonian, freed from the blockade, and
he who drinks the Save, grateful because he now dare throw open the
gates of cities closed for so many years. Such sharpen once more
upon the whetstone their sickles dark with rust and cause their
mattocks, foul with want of use, to shine as of old. Each sees again
his well-remembered cottage, kisses his native hills, and can scarce
believe real the furrows cut by his heavy plough. He hews down the
forests and renders again fit for cultivation fields which generations
had let run wild. Once more he covers the banks of the Danube with
vineyards and rejoices to pay the taxes his forefathers paid, for it
was bloodshed that brought immunity. While thou art safe, heaven allows
the harassed body of our distracted empire to regain its youthful
vigour. Thou dost restore all that we have lost of old under so many
princes. Only when Stilicho’s hand brings remedy can grow a scar to
hide Roman wounds, and when at last the husbandman of Illyria returns
to his farms the treasury will again be enriched with Illyrian tribute.

But heaven’s judgement is not a whit behind man’s favour. The gods
unite for thine especial protection and deliver thine enemy into thy
hands upon the sea shore or hinder his flight by the ocean’s immense
barrier or make him turn his arms madly against himself; and so, a
second Pentheus, he is hewn in

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 18

    bacchati laniant Pentheo corpora ritu;
    insidias retegunt et in ipsa cubilia fraudum
    ducunt ceu tenera venantem nare Molossi.                           215
    ominibus ventura notant aut alite monstrant
    aut monitos certa dignantur imagine somnos.
      Pro quibus innumerae trabearum insignia terrae
    certatim petiere tibi. poscentibus ipse
    restiteras et mens, aliorum prona favori,                          220
    iudex dura sui, facibus succensa pudoris
    tarda verecundis excusat praemia causis.
    ergo avidae tantosque novi spe consulis annos
    elusae dominae pergunt ad limina Romae,
    si minus adnuerit precibus, vel cogere certae                      225
    cunctantem votoque moras auferre paratae.
    conveniunt ad tecta deae, quae candida lucent
    monte Palatino. glaucis tum prima Minervae
    nexa comam foliis fulvaque intexta micantem
    veste Tagum tales profert Hispania voces:                          230
      “Cuncta mihi semper Stilicho, quaecumque poposci,
    concessit tantumque suos invidit honores.
    Augusti potuit soceri contemnere fasces:
    iam negat et genero. si non ut ductor ab orbe
    quem regit, accipiat saltem cognatus ab aula.                      235
    exiguumne putat, quod sic amplexus Hiberam
    progeniem nostros inmoto iure nepotes
    sustinet, ut patrium commendet purpura Baetim?
    quod pulchro Mariae fecundat germine regnum?

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 19

pieces by his own soldier’s frenzied blades. The gods discover for thee
plots against thy life and lead thee to the very lair of treason, even
as Molossan hounds guide the huntsman with their subtle scent. They
show forth the future by omens or by birds or they deign to give thee
clear warning in dreams.

For which thing’s sake countless lands in rivalry have sought for thee
the consul’s robe, but thou thyself didst oppose their desire, and
thy mind, so ready to grant favour to another, so rigorous a critic
of itself, kindling with the torch of modesty, with bashful pleading
deprecates that late reward. And so, anxious to see accomplished the
hopes, vainly conceived through so many years, of seeing in thee their
new consul, they hasten to the gates of royal Rome, determined, should
she not listen to their entreaties, to constrain her hesitation,
and prepared to sweep away all hindrances that delay their prayer.
They meet at the temple of the goddess that shines bright upon the
Palatine.[4] First to speak was Spain, her head crowned with a
grey-leaved garland from Minerva’s olive and golden Tagus woven into
her shining robe: “Everything that I have ever asked of Stilicho he has
granted me, and has begrudged only honour for himself. Once he found
it in his heart to refuse the consulship at the hands of an emperor,
his father-in-law; he now refuses it also from his son-in-law. If not
as a guardian from the world he rules, at least let him receive it as
a kinsman from his emperor. Counts he it a small thing that, taking
my offspring to his arms, he so upholds my grandsons[5] in their
undisturbed rule, that the purple ennobles their native Baetis? That by
means of fair Maria he dowers

    [4] The temple, that is, of the goddess Roma.

    [5] Arcadius and Honorius who, as sons of Theodosius, the Spaniard, are
    grandsons of Spain.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 20

    quod dominis speratur avus?”                                       240
                                  Tum flava repexo
    Gallia crine ferox evinctaque torque decoro
    binaque gaesa tenens animoso pectore fatur:
    “qui mihi Germanos solus Francosque subegit,
    cur nondum legitur fastis? cur pagina tantum
    nescit adhuc nomen, quod iam numerare decebat?                     245
    usque adeone levis pacati gloria Rheni?”
      Inde Caledonio velata Britannia monstro,
    ferro picta genas, cuius vestigia verrit
    caerulus Oceanique aestum mentitur amictus:
    “me quoque vicinis pereuntem gentibus” inquit                      250
    “munivit Stilicho, totam cum Scottus Hivernen
    movit et infesto spumavit remige Tethys.
    illius effectum curis, ne tela timerem
    Scottica, ne Pictum tremerem, ne litore toto
    prospicerem dubiis venturum Saxona ventis.”                        255
      Tum spicis et dente comas inlustris eburno
    et calido rubicunda die sic Africa fatur:
    “sperabam nullas trabeis Gildone perempto
    nasci posse moras. etiam nunc ille repugnat
    et tanto dubitat fasces praebere triumpho,                         260
    qui mihi Maurorum penitus lacrimabile nomen
    ignorare dedit?”
                      Post has Oenotria lentis
    vitibus intorquens hederas et palmite largo
    vina fluens: “si vos adeo Stilichone curules
    augeri flagratis” ait “quas sola iuvare                            265
    fama potest, quanto me dignius incitat ardor,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 21

Rome with a dynasty? That he is looked to as the ancestor of kings?”

Then warlike Gaul, her hair combed back, a rich necklace about her
neck, and javelins twain in her hands, thus spake with kindling heart:
“Why is his title not yet read in the annals of Rome, who by his own
might o’ercame for me the Germans and the Franks? Why is the page of
history still ignorant of a name that by now should have been inscribed
therein so often? Is, then, bringing peace to the Rhine so light a
title to fame?”

Next spake Britain clothed in the skin of some Caledonian beast, her
cheeks tattooed, and an azure cloak, rivalling the swell of ocean,
sweeping to her feet: “Stilicho gave aid to me also when at the mercy
of neighbouring tribes, what time the Scots roused all Hibernia against
me and the sea foamed to the beat of hostile oars. Thanks to his care I
had no need to fear the Scottish arms or tremble at the Pict, or keep
watch along all my coasts for the Saxon who would come whatever wind
might blow.”

Then up spake Africa, her hair gay with wheat ears and an ivory comb
and her face all sun-burned: “I hoped that after Gildo’s death no
obstacle could prevent Stilicho’s acceptance of the consulship. Does
he even yet refuse and hesitate to honour with the fasces so great a
triumph--he who has enabled me utterly to forget the tearful name of
Moor?”

After these came Italy, pliant vine and ivy interlacing on her head,
pressing the wine from plentiful ripe grapes. Said she: “If you are
thus eager that Stilicho should augment the dignity of the curule
chair, you to whom the mere report can bring delight, how much more
rightly does a longing

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 22

    ut praesente fruar conscendentemque tribunal
    prosequar atque anni pandentem claustra salutem?”
      Talibus alternant studiis Romamque precantes,
    pro cunctis, hortantur, eat. nec segnius illa                      270
    paruit officio, raptis sed protinus armis
    ocior excusso per nubila sidere tendit.
    transvehitur Tuscos Appenninusque volatu
    stringitur. Eridanus clipei iam fulgurat umbra;
    constitit ante ducem tetrica nec Pallade vultum                    275
    deterior nec Marte minor. tremit orbe corusco
    iam domus et summae tangunt laquearia cristae:
    tum prior attonitum gratis adfata querellis:
      “Servatas, Stilicho, per te, venerande, curules,
    ornatas necdum fateor. quid profuit anni                           280
    servilem pepulisse notam? defendis honorem
    quem fugis, et spernis tota quem mole tueris?
    respuis oblatum, pro quo labente resistis?
    quae iam causa morae? quo me cunctabere rursus
    ingenio? nullus Boreae metus, omnis et Austri                      285
    ora silet: cecidit Maurus, Germania cessit
    et Ianum pax alta ligat. te consule necdum
    digna feror? titulumne levem parvique nitoris
    credimus, Augusti quo se decorare fatentur,
    sub iuga quo gentes captivis regibus egi?                          290
      “Non, si prodigiis casus natura futuros
    signat, polluimur macula. quod reris, Eois

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 23

inspire me to enjoy his presence, to attend him as he mounts his seat
and to salute his opening of the new year’s course?”

One after another they pour forth these entreaties and beg Rome to
approach Stilicho in the name of them all. Right swiftly she obeyed
their behest and seizing at once her arms winged her way quicker than
a shooting star through the clouds of heaven. Over Etruria she flew,
grazed the Apennines in her flight, and lit Eridanu’s wave with the
reflexion of her shield. She stood before the general, imposing as
mighty Pallas, terrible as Mars. The palace trembled at the glitter of
her aegis and her helmet plumes brushed the pannelled ceiling. Then as
he stood astonished she first addressed him with flattering reproaches:
“I acknowledge, revered Stilicho, that thou hast saved but not yet
brought honour to the curule chair. Of what avail to have rid the year
of the brand of slavery? Dost thou defend a dignity thou shunnest?
scorn what with all thy might thou madest? reject when offered what
thou didst save when falling? Why dost thou hold back? Why disappoint
my prayers? No danger threatens from the north, the south is quiet; the
Moors have been subdued, Germany has yielded, profound peace holds fast
the doors of Janu’s temple. Am I not yet worthy to have thee for my
consul? Can we believe that office unimportant and of slender dignity
to hold which emperors think themselves honoured, that office by means
of which I have caused conquered peoples and captive kings to pass
beneath the yoke?

“If nature by her portents foreshadow coming ills I am not besmirched
therewith. Nay, that thou

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 24

    omen erat. quamquam nullis mihi cognita rebus
    fabula; vix tanto risit de crimine rumor.
    opprobrii stat nulla fides nec littera venit                       295
    vulgatura nefas: in quo vel maxima virtus
    est tua quod, nostros qui consulis omnia patres,
    de monstris taceas. pellendi denique nulla
    dedecoris sanctum violant oracula coetum
    nec mea funestum versavit curia nomen.                             300
    pars sceleris dubitasse fuit: quaecumque profana
    pagina de primo venisset limine Phoebi,
    ante fretum deleta mihi, ne turpia castis
    auribus Italiae fatorum[6] exempla nocerent.
    publicus ille furor, quantum tua cura peregit,                     305
    secretum meruit. laetetur quisquis Eoos
    scribere desierit fastos: portenta Gabinos
    ista latent; propriam labem texisse laborent.
    cur ego, quem numquam didici sensive creatum,
    gratuler exemptum? delicti paenitet illos:                         310
    nos nec credidimus.
                         “Fuerit tamen omnibus unum
    crimen et ad nostras manaverit usque secures:
    plus ideo sumenda tibi fastigia vitas,
    ne pereat tam priscus honos, qui portus honorum
    semper erat. nullo sarciri consule damnum                          315
    excepto Stilichone potest. bene praescia tempus
    mens tua distulerat; titulo tunc crescere posses,
    nunc per te titulus. consul succurre gravatis
    consulibus, quicumque fuit, quicumque futurus;
    annum redde tuum, quem iam secura sequatur                         320

    [6] Birt prints _factorum_ (EΠ); the other MSS. have _fatorum_; Koch
    suggests _fractorum_ (in the sense of “effeminate”).

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 25

countest ill omen was for the East. Yet no facts confirm the tale I
have heard; Rumour’s self scarce smiled at such a tale of guilt.[7] The
disgrace has no proof; no letter came to divulge the wicked secret. In
this lies thine especial virtue, that, while consulting the senate on
every question, thou hast not mentioned this portent. No decree for the
suppression of this scandal has impaired the dignity of this august
assembly, nor has that ill-omened name been heard in my senate. To have
hesitated would have been to share his guilt. All letters telling of
this profanation that came from the far East were destroyed e’er they
could cross the sea, that fortune’s shameful turn should not offend the
chaste ears of Italy. That infatuation of a people was best rewarded
with silence--and how strenuous were thine endeavours that it should so
be! Joy should be his who needs no longer pen the annals of the East.
Our Latin story knows no such blot: let others take pains to conceal
their own disgrace. Why should I applaud the downfall of one of whose
elevation I never heard nor knew? ’Tis for the guilty to repent; we
have never even believed.

“Yet had the guilt of all been one and this pollution stained _our_
axes, all the more shouldst thou have taken the high office thou dost
shun lest that ancient dignity--ever the goal of all dignities--should
be destroyed. No consul, save Stilicho alone, can repair that ruin.
With what foreknowledge had thy soul delayed the hour: once it would
have added lustre unto thee, now thou dost add lustre unto it. Do thou
as consul wipe out the insult offered to all consuls that have been and
yet shall be. Give thy name to the year that posterity

    [7] Claudian is referring to the consulship of Eutropius.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 26

    posteritas nec iam doleat defensa vetustas.
    sic trabeis ultor Stilicho Brutusque repertor.
    libertas populi primo tunc consule Bruto
    reddita per fasces; hic fascibus expulit ipsis
    servitium. instituit sublimem Brutus honorem;                      325
    adseruit Stilicho. plus est servasse repertum,
    quam quaesisse novum. quid tardius ore rubenti
    adnuis et solitus frontem circumfluit ignis?
    tandem vince tuum, vincis qui cuncta, pudorem.
      “Hos etiam, quamvis corrumpi munere nullo                        330
    te certum est, mirare libens ac suscipe cinctus,
    quos tibi divino mecum Tritonia duxit
    pectine: tincta simul repetito murice fila
    contulimus pensis et eodem nevimus auro,
    aurea quo Lachesis sub te mihi saecula texit.                      335
    hic ego promissam subolem sperataque mundo
    pignora praelusi. veram mox ipse probabis
    me vatem nostraeque fidem venientia telae
    fata dabunt.”
                  Dixit gremioque rigentia profert
    dona, graves auro trabeas. insigne Minervam                        340
    spirat opus, rutilis hic pingitur aula columnis
    et sacri Mariae partus; Lucina dolores
    solatur; residet fulgente puerpera lecto;
    sollicitae iuxta pallescunt gaudia matris.
    susceptum puerum redimitae tempora Nymphae                         345
    auri fonte lavant: teneros de stamine risus
    vagitusque audire putes. iam creverat infans

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 27

may dwell thereafter securely, and that antiquity, thus vindicated,
may cease from her complaints. Brutus was the founder of the office,
let Stilicho be its avenger. Brutus, the first consul, won liberty for
the Roman people by means of the consular fasces: Stilicho banished
the taint of slavery from those fasces. Brutus instituted this supreme
dignity; Stilicho saved it; and it is greater to preserve what already
is than to create that which is not. Why do thy blushes grant so tardy
an acceptance of our prayers? Why does the accustomed flush o’erspread
thy brow? World-conqueror, conquer now thine own diffidence.

“Full well I know that no gift can seduce thee, yet be pleased to
admire and receive this cloak, woven for thee on no mortal loom by
Minerva and myself. Twice together have we dipped the thread that goes
to make the cloth in purple dye and interwoven therewith that same gold
of which Lachesis has woven the golden centuries that are to be mine
beneath thy rule. See here I have prefigured thy destined progeny,
those thy children for whom the world prays; soon shalt thou confess me
a true prophet and coming fate prove that my embroidery is true.”

She spake and drew from her bosom the gift, a consul’s cloak, stiff
and heavy with gold. The glorious woof breathes Minerva’s skill. Here
is depicted a palace with columns of red marble and Maria’s sacred
travail. Lucina eases her labour. On a splendid couch lies the young
mother, by her side sits her own mother, pale with anxiety yet happy
withal. The flower-crowned Nymphs take up the babe and wash him in a
golden basin. Almost could one hear rising from the embroidery the
little child’s mingled laughter and wailing. And now the babe

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 28

    ore ferens patrem: Stilicho maturior aevi
    Martia recturo tradit praecepta nepoti.
    parte alia spumis fucantem Serica frena                            350
    sanguineis primae signatus flore iuventae
    Eucherius flectebat equum iaculisque vel areu
    aurea purpureos tollentes cornua cervos
    aureus ipse ferit. Venus hic invecta columbis
    tertia regali iungit conubia nexu,                                 355
    pennatique nurum circumstipantur Amores
    progenitam Augustis Augustorumque sororem.
    Eucherius trepido iam flammea sublevat ore
    virginis; adridet retro Thermantia fratri.
    iam domus haec utroque petit diademata sexu                        360
    reginasque parit reginarumque maritos.
      Talibus invitat donis dextraque gerendum
    diva simul porrexit ebur; sollemnibus urnam
    commovet auspiciis avibusque incepta secundat.
    tunc habiles armis umeros iam vestibus ambit                       365
    Romuleis; Latii sederunt pectore cultus
    loricaeque locum decuit toga. talis ab Histro
    vel Scythico victor rediens Gradivus ab axe
    deposito mitis clipeo candentibus urbem
    ingreditur trabeatus equis; spatiosa Quirinus                      370
    frena regit currumque patris Bellona cruentum
    ditibus exuviis tendens ad sidera quercum
    praecedit, lictorque Metus cum fratre Pavore
    barbara ferratis innectunt colla catenis

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 29

had grown up, recalling his father in countenance; Stilicho, riper in
years, teaches his grandson, the emperor that is to be, the science
of war. In another part Eucherius, the down of early manhood on his
cheeks, rode his horse that flecked its silken reins with bloody foam.
Woven himself of gold he smites with javelin or arrow the purple stags
that raise their golden horns. Here Venus, borne in her dove-drawn
chariot, unites for the third time the hero’s family with the princely
house[8] and the winged Loves throng the affianced bride, daughter and
sister of an emperor. Eucherius now lifts the veil from the bashful
maiden’s face; Thermantia smiles upon her brother’s joy. This house now
seeks the crown in the person of either sex, it gives birth to queens
and the husbands of queens.

Such are the gifts wherewith the goddess sought to win Stilicho,
handing to him at the same time the ivory staff.[9] She shook the urn
to obtain the customary signs and confirmed the beginning of his task
by favourable auspices. Then she clothed with the vesture of Romulus
those shoulders better accustomed to armour. The garb of Latium covers
his breast and the toga graces what erstwhile the cuirass protected.
Thus Mars, returning victorious from the Danube or the Scythian clime,
a god of peace now his shield is laid aside, enters the city wearing
the consul’s cloak and in a chariot drawn by white horses; Quirinus
directs the ample reins and Bellona marches before her father’s car
holding aloft the bloody oak-branch decked with the spoils won in
single combat; Fear and his brother Terror are the lictors and cast
chains of iron on the necks of captive

    [8] Claudian seems to refer to the marriages (1) of Stilicho and
    Serena; (2) of Honorius and Maria (both, of course, accomplished
    facts); and (3) of Eucherius, son of Stilicho, and Placidia
    (the “nurus”), sister of Honorius. As a matter of fact Placidia
    subsequently married Ataulf, brother-in-law of Alaric.

    [9] One of the insignia of the consulship.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 30

    velati galeas lauro, propiusque iugales                            375
    formido ingentem vibrat succincta securim.
      Vidit ut optato se consule Roma potitam:
    “nunc” ait “Elysii lucos inrumpere campi,
    nunc libet, ut tanti Curiis miracula voti
    Fabriciisque feram, famae qui vulnere nuper                        380
    calcatam Severe togam: iam prata choreis
    pulsent nec rigidos pudeat lusisse Catones.
    audiat hoc senior Brutus Poenisque tremendi
    Scipiadae, geminis tandem quod libera damnis
    unius auxilio fasces Libyamque recepi.                             385
    quod superest unum precibus, fortissime consul,
    adde meis, urbique tuum largire parumper,
    quem rogat, adventum, quam tu belloque fameque
    depulsa terris iterum regnare dedisti.
    splendida suscipiant alium te rostra Camillum,                     390
    ultorem videant servatoremque Quirites
    et populus quem ductor ames: quibus Africa per te
    nec prius auditas Rhodanus iam donat aristas,
    ut mihi vel Massyla Ceres vel Gallica prosit
    fertilitas messesque vehat nunc umidus Auster,                     395
    nunc Aquilo, cunctis ditescant horrea ventis.
      “Quae tunc Flaminiam stipabunt milia vulgi!
    fallax o quotiens pulvis deludet amorem
    suspensum, veniens omni dum crederis hora!
    spectabunt cupidae matres, spargentur et omnes                     400
    flore viae, superet cum Pincia culmina consul

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 31

barbarians, their helmets wreathed with laurel, while Panic, her robe
upgirt, walks by the yoke-horses, brandishing a mighty battle-axe.

When Rome saw herself possessed of the consul for whom she had prayed,
“Now,” she said, “fain would I hasten to the fields and woods of
Elysium to bear the news of this wondrous answer to our universal
prayer to the Curii and Fabricii who have wept for the dignity of the
consul’s toga so lately outraged. Let them now tread the meads in
joyous dance and the austere Catos not blush to join their sport. Let
the elder Brutus hear the news and the Scipios, terror of Carthage,
learn that by one man’s help I have been rescued from a double danger
and have recovered both Libya and the fasces. One thing only is left,
and do thou, brave consul, add it to my prayers--bestow awhile that
presence she entreats upon the city which thou hast rescued from war
and famine, and restored to the overlordship of the world. Let our
famous rostrum welcome a second Camillus and our citizens look upon
their avenger and saviour, ay, and the common people whom thou, their
leader, lovest, the people to whom Africa, because of thee, offers
her harvests and the Rhone her crops till now unheard of, whereby
Libyan fields and Gallic abundance are at my service and now the rainy
south-wind and now the north wafts grain to my shores and my granaries
are full whatever breeze may blow.

“What thousands will then throng the Flaminian Way! How often will the
deceptive dust disappoint the loving expectation of those who trust to
see thee arrive every minute! Anxiously our mothers watch for thee;
every road will be strewn with flowers

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 32

    arduus, antiqui species Romana senatus.
    Pompeiana dabunt quantos proscaenia plausus!
    ad caelum quotiens vallis tibi Murcia ducet
    nomen Aventino Pallanteoque recussum!                              405
    nunc te conspiciam castris, permitte, relictis
    mox et cum genero trabeis visura secundis.”
      Haec dum Roma refert, iam Fama loquacibus alis
    pervolat Oceanum, linguis et mille citatos
    festinare iubet proceres, nullique senectus,                       410
    non iter hibernis obstant nec flatibus Alpes:
    vincit amor. meriti pridem clarique vetustis
    fascibus ad socii properant et vindicis annum.
    sic ubi fecunda reparavit morte iuventam
    et patrios idem cineres collectaque portat                         415
    unguibus ossa piis Nilique ad litora tendens
    unicus extremo Phoenix procedit ab Euro:
    conveniunt aquilae cunctaeque ex orbe volucres,
    ut Solis mirentur avem; procul ignea lucet
    ales, odorati redolent cui cinnama busti.                          420
      Nec minor in caelo chorus est; exultat uterque
    Theodosius divique tui; Sol ipse quadrigis
    vere coronatis dignum tibi praeparat annum.
      Est ignota procul nostraeque impervia menti,
    vix adeunda deis, annorum squalida mater,                          425
    inmensi spelunca aevi, quae tempora vasto
    suppeditat revocatque sinu. complectitur antrum,
    omnia qui placido consumit numine, serpens
    perpetuumque viret squamis caudamque reductam
    ore vorat tacito relegens exordia lapsu.                           430

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 33

while the consul, true image of Rome’s ancient senate, climbs the steep
summit of the Pincian hill. What applause from the theatre of Pompey!
How often will the Murcian valley raise to heaven thy name re-echoed by
Aventine and Palatine! Leave the camp and let me behold thee now, soon
to see thee, consul for a second time, along with thy son-in-law.”

While Rome so spake, Fame, on wings of rumour, flies over the sea and
with her thousand tongues bids the chiefs speed to the capital. Not
one can age hold back, nor the long journey, nor the Alp’s wintry
blasts; Love wins the victory. Veterans whom the fasces ennobled long
since hasten to greet the year of their colleague and avenger. So when
by that birth in death the Phoenix renews its youth and gathers its
father’s ashes and carries them lovingly in its talons, winging its
way, sole of its kind, from the extreme east to Nile’s coasts, the
eagles gather together and all the fowls from every quarter to marvel
at the bird of the sun; afar its living plumage shines, itself redolent
of the spices of its father’s fragrant pyre.

There is like joy in heaven: the two Theodosii and thine own protecting
deities are glad; the Sun himself, decking his chariot with spring
flowers, prepares a year worthy of thee.

Far away, all unknown, beyond the range of mortal minds, scarce to be
approached by the gods, is a cavern of immense age, hoary mother of
the years, her vast breast at once the cradle and the tomb of time. A
serpent[10] surrounds this cave, engulfing everything with slow but
all-devouring jaws; never ceases the glint of his green scales. His
mouth devours the back-bending tail as with silent movement he traces
his own beginning. Before

    [10] Eternity, in the sense of endless time, was pictured by the
    Egyptians as a snake devouring its own tail; _cf._ Plut. _De Is. et
    Osir._ i. 2, p. 5.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 34

    vestibuli custos vultu longaeva decoro
    ante fores Natura sedet, cunctisque volantes
    dependent membris animae. mansura verendus
    scribit iura senex, numeros qui dividit astris
    et cursus stabilesque moras, quibus omnia vivunt                   435
    ac pereunt fixis cum legibus. ille recenset,
    incertum quid Martis iter certumque Tonantis
    prospiciat mundo; quid velox semita Lunae
    pigraque Saturni; quantum Cytherea sereno
    curriculo Phoebique comes Cyllenius erret.                         440
      Illius ut magno Sol limine constitit antri,
    occurrit Natura potens seniorque superbis
    canitiem inclinat radiis. tum sponte reclusus
    laxavit postes adamas, penetrale profundum
    panditur et sedes aevique arcana patescunt.                        445
    hic habitant vario facies distincta metallo
    saecula certa locis: illic glomerantur aena,
    hic ferrata rigent, illic argentea candent.
    eximia regione domus, contingere terris
    difficilis, rutili stabat grex aureus anni:                        450
    quorum praecipuum pretioso corpore Titan
    signandum Stilichone legit; tunc imperat omnes
    pone sequi dictisque simul compellat euntes:
      “En, cui distulimus melioris saecla metalli,
    consul adest. ite optati mortalibus anni,                          455
    ducite virtutes; hominum florescite rursus
    ingeniis hilares Baccho frugumque feraces.
    non inter geminos Anguis glaciale Triones
    sibilet, inmodico nec frigore saeviat Ursa.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 35

the entrance sits Nature, guardian of the threshold, of age immense
yet ever lovely, around whom throng and flit spirits on every side. A
venerable old man writes down immutable laws: he fixes the number of
stars in each constellation and causes these to move and those to be
at rest, whereby everything lives or dies by pre-ordained laws. ’Tis
he decides Mar’s uncertain orbit, Jupiter’s fixed course through the
heaven, the swift path of the moon, and the slow march of Saturn; he
limits the wanderings of Venu’s bright chariot and of Mercury, Phoebu’s
companion.

When the Sun rested upon the spacious threshold of this cavern dame
Nature ran to meet him and the old man bent a hoary head before his
proud rays. The adamantine door swung open of its own accord and
revealed the vast interior, displaying the house and the secrets of
Time. Here in their appointed places dwell the ages, their aspect
marked by varying metals: there are piled those of brass; here those
of iron stand stiff; there the silver ones gleam bright. In a fairer
part of the cave, shy of contact with the earth, stood the group of
golden years; of these Phoebus chooses the one of richest substance
to be marked with the name of Stilicho. Then, bidding the rest follow
behind him, he addresses them thus as they pass. “Lo! the consul is at
hand for whom we have delayed an age of nobler ore. Go ye, years long
prayed for by man, bring back virtue; let genius flourish once more;
may Bacchus give you joy and fruitful Ceres bless you. Let not the
constellation of the Serpent breathe forth too icy an air from between
the two Ploughing Oxen nor the Bear vent his excessive

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 36

    non toto fremat ore[11] Leo, nec brachia Cancri                    460
    urat atrox aestas, madidae nec prodigus urnae
    semina praerupto dissolvat Aquarius imbre.
    Phrixeus roseo producat fertile cornu
    ver Aries, pingues nec grandine tundat olivas
    Scorpius; autumni maturet germina Virgo,                           465
    lenior et gravidis adlatret Sirius uvis.”
      Sic fatus croceis rorantes ignibus hortos
    ingreditur vallemque suam, quam flammeus ambit
    rivus et inriguis largum iubar ingerit herbis,
    quas Solis pascuntur equi; flagrantibus inde                       470
    caesariem sertis et lutea lora iubasque
    subligat alipedum. gelidas hinc Lucifer ornat,
    hinc Aurora comas iuxtaque adludit habenis
    aureus et nomen praetendit consulis Annus:
    inque novos iterum revoluto cardine cursus                         475
    scribunt aetheriis Stilichonem sidera fastis.

    [11] _ore_ Π; the other MSS. give _igne_. But _ore_ better corresponds
    with _brachia_.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 37

cold; let not the Lion rage with his gaping maw nor pitiless summer
inflame the claws of Cancer. Let not Aquarius, too prodigal of his
rainy urn, flood the young seedlings with sudden storms. Let Phrixu’s
ram, his horns twined with roses, extend the fertile spring and let not
the Scorpion beat down the ripe olives with his hail. Let the Virgin
mature the fruits of Autumn and the Dog-star, more gentle than his
wont, refrain from barking at the heavy grape-clusters.”

So saying he entered his garden starred with fiery dew, the valley
round which runs a river of flame feeding with its bounteous rays
the dripping weeds whereon the horses of the sun do pasture. Here he
gathers fragrant flowers wherewith he decks the heads, the golden
reins, and manes of his steeds. With leaves from hence Lucifer and
Aurora entwine their oozy locks. Hard by the golden year, displaying
the consul’s name, smiles upon his chariot, and the stars, recommencing
their courses, inscribe the name of Stilicho in the annals of the sky.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 38




DE CONSULATU STILICHONIS

LIBER TERTIUS

PRAEFATIO

(XXIII.)


    Maior Scipiades, Italis qui solus ab oris
      in proprium vertit Punica bella caput,
    non sine Pieriis exercuit artibus arma:
      semper erat vatum maxima cura duci.
    gaudet enim virtus testes sibi iungere Musas;                        5
      carmen amat quisquis carmine digna gerit.
    ergo seu patriis primaevus manibus ultor
      subderet Hispanum legibus Oceanum,
    seu Tyrias certa fracturus cuspide vires
      inferret Libyco signa tremenda mari,                              10
    haerebat doctus lateri castrisque solebat
      omnibus in medias Ennius ire tubas,
    illi post lituos pedites favere canenti
      laudavitque nova caede cruentus eques.
    cumque triumpharet gemina Carthagine victa                          15
      (hanc vindex patri vicerat, hanc patriae),

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 39




ON STILICHO’S CONSULSHIP

BOOK III

PREFACE

(XXIII.)


The elder Scipio, who single-handed turned the Punic wars back from
Italy’s coasts to their own home, fought not his battles unmindful of
the Muse’s art; poets were ever the hero’s special care. For valour is
always fain to seek alliance with the Muses that they may bear witness
to her deeds; he loves song whose exploits deserve the meed of song.
Therefore, whether to avenge his sire’s[12] death the young warrior
brought into subjection the Spanish seas or embarked upon the Libyan
wave his dreadful standards, resolved to break with sure spear the
strength of Carthage, the poet Ennius was ever at his side and in all
his campaigns followed the trumpet’s call into the midst of the fray.
Him after the battle the soldiers loved to hear sing, and the trooper,
still dripping with blood, would applaud his verses. When Scipio had
triumphed over either Carthage--over the one to avenge his sire, over
the other his fatherland--and when at last, after the

    [12] P. Cornelius Scipio (_cos._ 218 B.C.) was defeated and killed
    by Hasdrubal in Spain in 211 B.C. The famous P. Cornelius Scipio
    Africanus was the younger of his two sons.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 40

    cum longi Libyam tandem post funera belli
      ante suas maestam cogeret ire rotas:
    advexit reduces secum Victoria Musas
      et sertum vati Martia laurus erat.                                20

    Noster Scipiades Stilicho, quo concidit alter
      Hannibal antiquo saevior Hannibale,
    te mihi post quintos annorum Roma recursus
      reddidit et votis iussit adesse suis.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 41

disasters of a long war, he drove weeping Libya a captive before his
chariot wheel, Victory brought back the Muses in her train and Mar’s
laurel crowned the poet’s brow.

Thee, Stilicho, our new Scipio, conqueror of a second Hannibal more
terrible than the first,--thee after five long years Rome has given
back to me and bidden me celebrate the completion of her vows.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 42




LIBER TERTIUS

(XXIV.)


    Quem populi plausu, procerum quem voce petebas,
    adspice, Roma, virum. iam tempora desine longae
    dinumerare viae visoque adsurgere semper
    pulvere: non dubiis ultra torquebere votis.
    totus adest oculis, aderat qui mentibus olim,                        5
    spe maior, fama melior. venerare curulem,
    quae tibi restituit fasces; complectere dextram,
    sub iuga quae Poenos iterum Romana redegit.
    excipe magnanimum pectus, quo frena reguntur
    imperii, cuius libratur sensibus orbis.                             10
    os sacrum, quod in aere colis, miraris in auro,
    cerne libens: hic est felix bellator ubique,
    defensor Libyae, Rheni pacator et Histri.
      Ostentare suos prisco si more labores
    et gentes cuperet vulgo monstrare subactas,                         15
    certassent utroque pares a cardine laurus:
    haec Alamannorum spoliis, Australibus illa
    ditior exuviis; illinc flavente Sygambri

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 43




BOOK III

(XXIV.)


Behold, O Rome, the hero whose presence the cries of thy people and the
voice of thy nobles has long demanded. Cease now to count the stages
of his long journey and to rise as though to greet him at the sight
of every storm of dust; no further shall uncertainty torment thee.
Full before thine eye is he who was long before thy mind, greater than
thy hopes, more glorious than his fame. Honour thou the consul who
has restored its dignity to the consulship; grasp the hand which has
made the Carthaginians pass once more under the Roman yoke. Welcome
the noble heart that directs the reins of empire and secures by its
providence the equipoise of the world. Look with joy upon the sacred
face thou worshippest cast in bronze and adorest in gold. Behold
the warrior successful in every field, the defender of Africa, the
conqueror of Rhine and Danube.

Should he wish in accordance with ancient custom to display the picture
of his labours and show to the people the tribes he has subdued,
crowns of laurel from north and south would contend in equally matched
rivalry. Here is a triumph rich with the spoils of the Germans, there
with those of the South; here would pass the Sygambri with their yellow

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 44

    caesarie, nigris hinc Mauri crinibus irent.
    ipse albis veheretur equis currumque secutus                        20
    laurigerum festo fremuisset carmine miles.
    hi famulos traherent reges; hi facta metallo
    oppida vel montes captivaque flumina ferrent.
    hinc Libyci fractis lugerent cornibus amnes;
    inde catenato gemeret Germania Rheno.                               25
    sed non inmodicus proprii iactator honoris
    consul, Roma, tuus. non illum praemia tantum
    quam labor ipse iuvat; strepitus fastidit inanes
    inque animis hominum pompa meliore triumphat.

    Non alium certe Romanae clarius arces                               30
    suscepere ducem, nec cum cedente rediret
    Fabricius Pyrrho nec cum Capitolia curru
    Pellaeae domitor Paullus conscenderet aulae.
    nec similis Latias patefecit gloria portas
    post Numidas Mario, post classica Martis Eoi                        35
    Pompeio. nulli pars aemula defuit umquam,
    quae gravis obstreperet laudi, stimulisque malignis
    facta sequebatur quamvis ingentia livor:
    solus hic invidiae fines virtute reliquit
    humanumque modum. quis enim livescere possit,                       40
    quod numquam pereant stellae? quod Iuppiter olim
    possideat caelum? quod noverit omnia Phoebus?
    est aliquod meriti spatium, quod nulla furentis
    invidiae mensura capit. ductoribus illis
    praeterea diversus erat favor: aequior ille                         45
    patribus invisus plebi; popularibus illi
    munito studiis languebat gratia patrum.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 45

locks, there the black-haired Moors. He himself would be drawn in a
laurel-decked chariot by white horses, and followed by his soldiers
chanting their festive songs. Some would lead captive kings, others
carry conquered towns wrought in bronze or mountains or rivers. Here
would go in sad procession the river-gods of Libya, their horns broken,
there Germany and the Rhine god in chains. Yet is not thy consul, O
Rome, an unbridled boaster of his own prowess. ’Tis not the rewards of
toil but the toil itself that he loves. He scorns empty applause and
celebrates a happier triumph in the hearts of his fellow-citizens.

Of a surety the citadel of Rome has never welcomed home any of her
generals with greater magnificence, no, not even Fabricius when he
returned after the surrender of Pyrrhus, nor Aemilius Paulus, conqueror
of Pella’s king, when he ascended the Capitol in his chariot. No such
triumph as this threw open the gates of Rome to Marius after his
conquest of Numidia or to Pompey after his victories in the East.
Each of these suffered from a rival faction that murmured uneasily
against their success, and envy pursued their actions, no matter how
noble, with spiteful stings. Stilicho alone was raised above the
range of envy and the measure of mankind. For who could be jealous of
the star’s eternity, of Jove’s ancient rule in heaven, of Phoebu’s
omniscience[13]? There are some merits so transcendent that furious
envy’s bounds cannot contain them. Moreover, those other heroes owed a
divided allegiance: one gained the favour of the nobles, but was hated
of the people, one, supported by the suffrage of the commons, enjoyed
but faintly the favour of the

    [13] Phoebus is said to “know everything” because, as the sun, he is
    the all-beholding (πανόπτης).

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 46

    omnis in hoc uno variis discordia cessit
    ordinibus; laetatur eques plauditque senator
    votaque patricio certant plebeia favori.                            50
      O felix servata vocat quem Roma parentem!
    o mundi communis amor, cui militat omnis
    Gallia, quem regum thalamis Hispania nectit,
    cuius et adventum crebris petiere Quirites
    vocibus et genero meruit praestante senatus!                        55
    non sic virginibus flores, non frugibus imbres,
    prospera non fessis optantur flamina nautis,
    ut tuus adspectus populo. quae numine tanto
    litora fatidicas attollunt Delia laurus,
    venturi quotiens adfulsit Apollinis arcus?                          60
    quae sic aurifero Pactoli fonte tumescit
    Lydia, cum domitis adparuit Euhius Indis?
    nonne vides et plebe vias et tecta latere
    matribus? his, Stilicho, cunctis inopina reluxit
    te victore salus! septem circumspice montes,                        65
    qui solis radios auri fulgore lacessunt,
    indutosque arcus spoliis aequataque templa
    nubibus et quidquid tanti struxere triumphi.
    quantum profueris, quantam servaveris urbem,
    attonitis metire oculis. haec fabula certe                          70
    cuncta forent, si Poenus adhuc incumberet Austro.
      Mos erat in veterum castris, ut tempora quercu
    velaret, validis fuso qui viribus hoste
    casurum potuit morti subducere civem.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 47

senate. In Stilicho’s case alone class rivalry has not raised its head:
the knights welcome him with joy, the senate with enthusiasm, while the
people’s prayers rival the goodwill of the nobles.

Blessed mortal, whom the Rome that thou hast saved calls her father;
darling of the world to whose banner flocks the whole of Gaul, whom
Spain connects by marriage with the imperial house, for whose advent
the citizens cried with ceaseless prayer, and whose presence the senate
owed to thine illustrious son-in-law. Not such a girl’s delight in
flowers, not such the desire of the crops for rain, or of weary sailors
for a prosperous breeze as is the longing of thy people for the sight
of thee. Under no such influence as this do the prophetic laurels
wave on Delo’s coast when the brightness of Apollo’s bow announces
the deity’s approach. Never did Pactolus’ golden wave so swell in
pride when Bacchus from conquered Ind visited his banks. Markest thou
not how the roads cannot be seen for the people, the roofs for the
matrons? Thanks to thy victories, Stilicho, salvation has dawned on
all beyond their hopes. Look round on Rome’s seven hills whose sheen
of gold rivals the very sun’s rays; see the arches decked with spoil,
the temples towering to the sky, and all the buildings that celebrate
this signal triumph. Let thine astonished glance measure the magnitude
of the city thou hast saved and the immensity of thy services. All this
would live but in the memory were the African still master of the south.

It was the custom in campaigns of olden time to crown with oak the brow
of him who by his valour had put the enemy to flight and succeeded in
rescuing a fellow-citizen from imminent death.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 48

    at tibi quae poterit pro tantis civica reddi                        75
    moenibus? aut quantae pensabunt facta coronae?
    nec solam populi vitam debere fatetur
    armis Roma tuis; sed, quo iucundior esset
    lucis honoratae fructus, venerabile famae
    pondus et amissas vires et regna recepit.                           80
    iam non praetumidi supplex Orientis ademptam
    legatis poscit Libyam famulosve precatur
    (dictu turpe) suos: sed robore freta Gabino
    te duce Romana tandem se vindicat ira.
    ipsa iubet signis bellaturoque togatus                              85
    imperat et spectant aquilae decreta senatus.
    ipsa tibi trabeas ultro dedit, ipsa curulem
    obtulit ultori fastosque ornare coëgit.
      Nil perdit decoris prisci nec libera quaerit
    saecula, cum donet fasces, cum proelia mandet;                      90
    seque etiam crevisse videt. quis Gallica rura,
    quis meminit Latio Senonum servisse ligones?
    aut quibus exemplis fecunda Thybris ab Arcto
    vexit Lingonico sudatas vomere messes?
    illa seges non auxilium modo praebuit urbi,                         95
    sed fuit indicio, quantum tibi, Roma, liceret:
    admonuit dominae gentes instarque tropaei
    rettulit ignotum gelidis vectigal ab oris.
      Hoc quoque maiestas augescit plena Quirini,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 49

But to thee what civic crown can we give for the salvation of so many
cities? Or what honours can recompense thy deeds? Nor is it only for
her people’s life that Rome owns herself a debtor to thine arms, but
that so she might have sweeter enjoyment of this glorious dawn she
has won back her ancient burden of renown, her lost strength and her
conquered kingdoms. No longer do her ambassadors kneel suppliant before
the proud East and beg that Libya may be given back to her; gone the
shameful spectacle of our city a suitor to her own slaves. No, relying
now on her native Latin vigour, Rome under thy leadership fights her
own battles with Roman spirit. She herself bids the standards advance;
the toga-clad consul directs the future conqueror, and the eagles
wait upon the orders of the senate. Of her own free choice hath Rome
bestowed on thee the consul’s robe, offered thee, her avenger, the
curule chair and compelled thee to adorn her annals.

Nothing of her ancient dignity hath she lost, no regret has she for the
age of republican freedom, since it is she who bestows the consular
honour, she who gives the order for battle. Nay, she sees the growth
of her power. Whose memory can recall a time when the fields of Gaul
and the hoes of the Senones were at our service? Has it ever happened
before that Tiber’s wave has carried grain from the fertile north over
the ploughing of whose fields the Lingones have toiled? Such a harvest
not only fulfilled Rome’s needs but also demonstrated the greatness of
her power; it reminded the peoples who was their mistress and brought
in triumph from those chill climes a tribute never before paid.

This, too, augments the majesty of Rome that the

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 50

    rectores Libyae populo quod iudice pallent                         100
    et post emeritas moderator quisque secures
    discrimen letale subit, quid Poenus arator
    intulerit, madidus quantum transmiserit Auster.
    ardua qui late terris responsa dedere,
    hic trepidant humiles; tremuit quos Africa nuper,                  105
    cernunt rostra reos. cani virtutibus aevi
    materiam pandit Stilicho populumque vetusti
    culminis inmemorem dominandi rursus in usum
    excitat, ut magnos calcet metuendus honores,
    pendat iustitia crimen, pietate remittat                           110
    errorem purosque probet damnetque nocentes
    et patrias iterum clemens exerceat artes.
      Fallitur egregio quisquis sub principe credit
    servitium. numquam libertas gratior extat
    quam sub rege pio. quos praeficit ipse regendis                    115
    rebus, ad arbitrium plebis patrumque reducit
    conceditque libens, meritis seu praemia poscant
    seu punire velint. posito iam purpura fastu
    de se iudicium non indignatur haberi.
    sic docuit regnare socer, sic cauta iuventae                       120
    frena dedit, teneros sic moribus induit annos
    verior Augusti genitor, fiducia belli,
    pacis consilium: per quem squalore remoto
    pristina Romuleis infloruit artibus aetas,
    per quem fracta diu translataque paene potestas                    125

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 51

chiefs of Libya tremble before the judgement-throne of our people, and
that, his office ended, each governor must account under pain of death
for all the corn the Carthaginian farmer has brought in, all that the
rainy south-wind has dispatched to Rome. Those who of late uttered
their proud judgements to broad domains here are cowed and tremble;
those whom Africa held in dread Rome’s forum sees accused.

Stilicho gives scope for the virtues of a bygone age and rouses a
people, forgetful of their former glory, to resume their accustomed
sovereignty, to make themselves feared, to tread powerful magistrates
beneath their heel, to mete out to crime its due reward, to show mercy
towards the erring, favour to the innocent, punishment to the guilty,
and to exercise once more their native virtue of clemency.

He errs who thinks that submission to a noble prince is slavery; never
does liberty show more fair than beneath a good king. Those he himself
appoints to rule he in turn brings before the judgement-seat of people
and senate, and gladly yields whether they claim reward for merit or
seek for punishment. Now the purple lays aside its pride and disdains
not to have judgement passed upon itself. Such were the principles of
rule taught by Stilicho to his son-in-law, Honorius; ’twas thus he
guided his youth with the reins of prudence, and with precepts such
as these directed his tender years, a truer father to the emperor
than Theodosius, his stay in war, his adviser in peace. Thanks to him
dishonour is banished and our age blossoms with Rome’s ancient virtues;
thanks to him power, long degraded and all but transferred,[14] no
longer, forgetful

    [14] _i.e._ (apparently) to Constantinople. Throughout this
    confused passage Claudian seems to be labouring the point that now
    the capital of the West (Rome) is restored to an equal importance
    with that of the East (Constantinople).

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 52

    non oblita sui servilibus exulat arvis,
    in proprium sed ducta larem victricia reddit
    fata solo fruiturque iterum, quibus haeserat olim,
    auspiciis capitique errantia membra reponit.
      Proxime dis consul, tantae qui prospicis urbi,                   130
    qua nihil in terris complectitur altius aether,
    cuius nec spatium visus nec corda decorem
    nec laudem vox ulla capit; quae luce metalli
    aemula vicinis fastigia conserit astris;
    quae septem scopulis zonas imitatur Olympi;                        135
    armorum legumque parens quae fundit in omnes
    imperium primique dedit cunabula iuris.
    haec est exiguis quae finibus orta tetendit
    in geminos axes parvaque a sede profecta
    dispersit cum sole manus. haec obvia fatis                         140
    innumeras uno gereret cum tempore pugnas,
    Hispanas caperet, Siculas obsideret urbes
    et Gallum terris prosterneret, aequore Poenum,
    numquam succubuit damnis et territa nullo
    vulnere post Cannas maior Trebiamque fremebat                      145
    et, cum iam premerent flammae murumque feriret
    hostis, in extremos aciem mittebat Hiberos
    nec stetit Oceano remisque ingressa profundum
    vincendos alio quaesivit in orbe Britannos.
    haec est in gremium victos quae sola recepit                       150
    humanumque genus communi nomine fovit
    matris, non dominae ritu, civesque vocavit
    quos domuit nexuque pio longinqua revinxit.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 53

of itself, is exiled in lands of servitude but, returned to its
rightful home, restores to Italy its victorious destiny, enjoys the
promised auspices of its foundation and gives back its scattered limbs
to the head of the empire.

Consul, all but peer of the gods, protector of a city greater than
any that upon earth the air encompasseth, whose amplitude no eye can
measure, whose beauty no imagination can picture, whose praise no
voice can sound, who raises a golden head amid the neighbouring stars
and with her seven hills imitates the seven regions of heaven, mother
of arms and of law, who extends her sway o’er all the earth and was
the earliest cradle of justice, this is the city which, sprung from
humble beginnings, has stretched to either pole, and from one small
place extended its power so as to be co-terminous with the sun’s light.
Open to the blows of fate while at one and the same time she fought
a thousand battles, conquered Spain, laid siege to the cities of
Sicily, subdued Gaul by land and Carthage by sea, never did she yield
to her losses nor show fear at any blow, but rose to greater heights
of courage after the disasters of Cannae and Trebia, and, while the
enemy’s fire threatened her, and her foe[15] smote upon her walls,
sent an army against the furthest Iberians. Nor did Ocean bar her
way; launching upon the deep, she sought in another world for Britons
to be vanquished. ’Tis she alone who has received the conquered into
her bosom and like a mother, not an empress, protected the human race
with a common name, summoning those whom she has defeated to share her
citizenship and drawing together distant races with bonds of

    [15] Hannibal.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 54

    huius pacificis debemus moribus omnes,
    quod veluti patriis regionibus utitur hospes;                      155
    quod sedem mutare licet; quod cernere Thylen
    lusus et horrendos quondam penetrare recessus;
    quod bibimus passim Rhodanum, potamus Orontem;
    quod cuncti gens una sumus. nec terminus umquam
    Romanae dicionis erit, nam cetera regna                            160
    luxuries vitiis odiisque superbia vertit:
    sic male sublimes fregit Spartanus Athenas
    atque idem Thebis cecidit; sic Medus ademit
    Assyrio Medoque tulit moderamina Perses;
    subiecit Persen Macedo, cessurus et ipse                           165
    Romanis. haec auguriis firmata Sibyllae,
    haec sacris animata Numae. huic[16] fulmina vibrat
    Iuppiter; hanc tota Tritonia Gorgone velat.
    arcanas huc Vesta faces, huc orgia Bacchus
    transtulit et Phrygios genetrix turrita leones;                    170
    huc defensurus morbos Epidaurius hospes
    reptavit placido tractu, vectumque per undas
    insula Paeonium texit Tiberina draconem.
      Hanc tu cum superis, Stilicho praeclare, tueris,
    protegis hanc clipeo patriam regumque ducumque                     175
    praecipueque tuam. dedit haec exordia lucis
    Eucherio puerumque ferens hic regia mater
    Augusto monstravit avo; laetatus at ille
    sustulit in Tyria reptantem veste nepotem,
    Romaque venturi gaudebat praescia fati,                            180
    quod te iam tanto meruisset pignore civem.
      Nec tamen ingratum nec, qui benefacta referre

    [16] Birt keeps the _hinc_ of the better MSS., comparing xxvi. 509 seu
    caelum seu Roma tonat; _huic_ ς.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 55

affection. To her rule of peace we owe it that the world is our home,
that we can live where we please, and that to visit Thule and explore
its once dreaded wilds is but a sport; thanks to her all and sundry
may drink the waters of the Rhone and quaff Orontes’ stream, thanks
to her we are all one people. Nor will there ever be a limit to the
empire of Rome, for luxury and its attendant vices, and pride with
sequent hate have brought to ruin all kingdoms else. ’Twas thus that
Sparta laid low the foolish pride of Athens but to fall herself a
victim to Thebes; thus that the Mede deprived the Assyrian of empire
and the Persian the Mede. Macedonia subdued Persia and was herself to
yield to Rome. But Rome found her strength in the oracles of the Sibyl,
her vigour in the hallowed laws of Numa. For her Jove brandishes his
thunderbolts; ’tis she to whom Minerva offers the full protection of
her shield; to her Vesta brought her sacred flame, Bacchus his rites,
and the turret-crowned mother of the gods her Phrygian lions. Hither to
keep disease at bay came, gliding with steady motion, the snake whose
home was Epidaurus, and Tiber’s isle gave shelter to the Paeonian[17]
serpent from beyond the sea.

This is the city whom thou, Stilicho, and heaven guard, her thou
protectest, mother of kings and generals, mother, above all, of thee.
Here Eucherius first beheld the light, here the queen his mother showed
the babe to his imperial grandsire who rejoiced to lift a grandson
upon his knee and to let him crawl upon his purple robes. Rome had
foreknowledge of his destined glory and was glad, for so dear a pledge
would keep thee ever her faithful citizen.

But think not this people ungrateful nor such as

    [17] _i.e._ Aesculapius. “Paeonian” from the Greek Παιών, the Healer.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 56

    nesciat, hunc credas populum. si volvere priscos
    annales libeat: quotiens hic proelia sumpsit
    pro sociis! quotiens dono concessit amicis                         185
    regibus Ausonio quaesitas sanguine terras!
    publica sed numquam tanto se gratia fudit
    adsensu: quis enim princeps non omnibus egit
    obsequiis dominum sese patremque vocari,
    quod tibi continuis resonant convexa diebus?                       190
    macte novis consul titulis! Mavortia plebes
    te dominum Bruto non indignante fatetur
    et, quod adhuc nullo potuit terrore coacta
    libertas Romana pati, Stilichonis amori
    detulit. exultant avidi, quocumque decorus                         195
    conspiciare loco, nomenque ad sidera tollunt
    nec vaga dilecto satiantur lumina vultu:
    seu circum trabeis fulgentibus aureus intres,
    seu celebres ludos, solio seu fultus eburno
    cingas iure forum, denso seu turbine vulgi                         200
    circumfusa tuae conscendant rostra secures.
      Quae vero procerum voces, quam certa fuere
    gaudia, cum totis exurgens ardua pennis
    ipsa duci sacras Victoria panderet aedes!
    o palma viridi gaudens et amica tropaeis                           205
    custos imperii virgo, quae sola mederis
    vulneribus nullumque doces sentire laborem,
    seu tibi Dictaeae placuerunt astra Coronae
    seu magis aestivo sedes vicina Leoni,
    seu sceptrum sublime Iovis seu Palladis ambis                      210
    aegida, seu fessi mulces suspiria Martis,
    adsis perpetuum Latio votisque senatus
    adnue, diva, tui. Stilicho tua saepius ornet

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                              Page 57

knows not how to repay benefits. Turn but the pages of history and thou
wilt find how often it has faced war for an ally’s sake, how often
bestowed as a gift on friendly monarchs lands won at the expense of
Italian blood. Yet never were public thanks poured forth with such
consent. For what prince has not sought with every blandishment to be
called lord and father--titles which the amphitheatres echo back to
thee day after day? Hail, consul, to thy new titles! Mars’ people calls
thee lord and Brutus gainsays them not; what till now no terror could
compel Rome’s free citizens to endure, they freely offered to their
love for Stilicho. Wheresoever thy shining form is seen they haste to
greet thee and raise to heaven thy name; nor is their wandering gaze
ever sated with looking upon thee whom they love when thou enterest the
Circus in thy shining robes of gold or art present at the games or,
seated on thine ivory throne, dispensest justice in the forum or, with
thine attendant lictors, mountest the rostrum thronged with the dense
and surging crowd.

But what were the acclamations of the great, how unfeigned their
rejoicings when Victory, soaring aloft with outspread wings, herself
threw open her holy temple to the hero? Maiden that lovest the green
bay, thou that art decked in robes of triumph, guardian of our empire,
sole healer of our wounds, that makest our toils as though they were
not, whether it pleaseth thee to dwell amid the stars of Ariadne’s
crown or nearer to the fervid Lion, whether thou art seated on the
lofty sceptre of Jove or Pallas’ shield or calmest the sighs of weary
Mars, be ever present to Latium and grant, goddess, the prayers of thy
senate. May Stilicho often crown thy portals

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 58

    limina teque simul rediens in castra reducat.
    hunc bellis comitare favens, hunc redde togatum                    215
    consiliis. semper placidis te moribus egit
    servavitque piam victis nec polluit umquam
    laurum saevitia. cives nec fronte superba
    despicit aut trepidam vexat legionibus urbem;
    sed verus patriae consul cessantibus armis                         220
    contentus lictore venit nec inutile quaerit
    ferri praesidium solo munitus amore.
      Magnarum nec parcus opum geminare profundas
    distulit impensas, sed post miracula castris
    edita vel genero Romae maiora reservat.                            225
    auratos Rhodiis imbres nascente Minerva
    indulsisse Iovem perhibent, Bacchoque paternum
    iam pulsante femur mutatus palluit Hermus
    in pretium, votique famem passurus avari
    ditabat rutilo quidquid Mida tangeret auro;                        230
    fabula seu verum canitur: tua copia vicit
    fontem Hermi tactumque Midae pluviamque Tonantis.
    obscurat veteres obscurabitque futuros
    par donis armisque manus: si solveret ignis
    quot dedit inmanes vili pro pondere massas                         235
    argenti, potuere lacus et flumina fundi.
      Nec tibi, quae pariter silvis dominaris et astris,
    exiguam Stilicho movit, Latonia, curam:
    tu quoque nobilibus spectacula nostra laboras
    inlustrare feris summoque in vertice rupis                         240
    Alpinae socias arcu cessante pudicas

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 59

and bear thee back with him to his armies. Accompany and bless him in
war and give him back in robes of peace to our council-chambers. Always
has he brought thee home in a spirit of mercy and kept thee kindly to
the vanquished nor ever stained thy laurels with cruelty. He neither
looks with disdain on his fellow-citizens nor harries the anxious city
with his legionaries; but true consul now that the war is ended he
comes accompanied only by his lictors nor seeks the useless protection
of the sword, guarded only by a people’s love.

Handling his great wealth in no niggard spirit he does not hesitate to
double his lavish expenses and after giving wondrous games in honour
of his soldiery and of Honorius reserves yet greater for Rome. They
say that Jove at Minerva’s birth showered gold upon lucky Rhodes; that
while Bacchus forced an egress from his father’s thigh Hermus grew
pale and turned to that same metal; that Midas, fated to suffer hunger
as a punishment for his greed, converted to shining gold everything
that he touched. Be these stories true or false thy liberality exceeds
the waters of Hermus, the touch of Midas, the Thunderer’s shower. Thy
hands, as prodigal of gifts as of daring deeds, o’ershadow the past
and will o’ershadow the future. Should fire have melted the countless
mass of silver thou bestowest as though it were the cheapest of metals,
lakes and rivers of silver might have been formed.

Thou too, Latonia, queen alike of the woods and of the stars, art
moved by no small care for Stilicho; thou toilest to distinguish our
spectacles with the forest’s noblest denizens, and on the dizzy summits
of Alpine rocks layest aside thy bow and summonest

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 60

    et pharetratarum comitum inviolabile cogis
    concilium. veniunt umeros et brachia nudae
    armataeque manus iaculis et terga sagittis,
    incomptae pulchraeque tamen; sudoribus ora                         245
    pulverulenta rubent, sexum nec cruda fatetur
    virginitas; sine lege comae; duo cingula vestem
    crure tenus pendere vetant. praecedit amicas
    flava Leontodame, sequitur nutrita Lycaeo
    Nebrophone telisque domat quae Maenala Thero.                      250
    ignea Cretaea properat Britomartis ab Ida
    et cursu Zephyris numquam cessura Lycaste.
    iungunt se geminae metuenda feris Hecaërge
    et soror, optatum numen venantibus, Opis
    progenitae Scythia: divas nemorumque potentes                      255
    fecit Hyperboreis Delos praelata pruinis.
    hae septem venere duces; exercitus alter
    Nympharum incedunt, acies formosa Dianae,
    centum Taygeti, centum de vertice Cynthi
    et totidem casto genuit quas flumine Ladon.                        260
    has ubi collectas vidit, sic Delia coepit:
      “O sociae, mecum thalami quae iura perosae
    virgineo gelidos percurritis agmine montes,
    cernitis ut Latio superi communibus ornent
    hunc annum studiis? quantos Neptunus equorum                       265
    donet ab orbe greges? laudi quod nulla canendae
    fratris plectra vacent? nostram quoque sentiat idem
    quam meritis debemus opem. non spicula poscit
    iste labor; maneant clausis nunc sicca pharetris,
    omnis et a solitis noster venatibus arcus                          270

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 61

thy virgin companions and the chaste band of thy quiver-bearing
followers. Thither they come, their shoulders and arms bare, spears
in their hands and arrows slung across their backs, beautiful though
unadorned; red their cheeks, dusty and suffused with sweat; their
fierce virginity betrays not their sex; disordered their hair; girdles
twain prevent their dresses from flowing down below their knees.
Golden-haired Leontodame precedes her comrades, Nebrophone, foster
child of Mount Lycaeus, follows her, and Thero whose arrows hold
Maenalus in subjection. Fiery Britomartis hastens from Cretan Ida and
Lycaste, peer of the western winds in flight. There join them the twin
sisters Hecaërge, terror of beasts, and Opis, deity beloved of hunters,
Scythian maids; their preference for Delos[18] over the frosts of the
north made them goddesses and queens of the woods. These were the seven
chiefs who came; there followed them a second band of Nymphs, Diana’s
lovely company, a hundred from Taygetus, a hundred from Cynthus’
summit, a hundred more whose first home was beside the chaste waters of
Ladon. When she saw these gathered together Delia thus began:

“Friends who hate the rites of wedlock even as I hate them, who scour
the snowy mountains in virgin companies, mark you how the gods with
unanimous favour glorify this year for Latium? How many herds of horses
Neptune provides from every quarter of the world? How that none of
my brother Apollo’s lyres can refrain from sounding the praises of
Stilicho? From us too let Stilicho receive the favour we justly owe
him; the task needs no javelin; let our arrows remain bloodless in our
unopened quivers. Let every bow refrain from its

    [18] _i.e._ they became goddesses through association with Diana whose
    chosen island was Delos.

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                              Page 62

    temperet; in solam cruor hic servetur harenam.
    retibus et clatris dilata morte tenendae
    ducendaeque ferae. cupidas arcete sagittas;
    consulis in plausum casuris parcite monstris.
    acceleret divisa manus: mihi cursus anhelas                        275
    tenditur ad Syrtes, mecum Dictynna Lycaste
    et comes Opis eat; steriles iuvat ire per aestus:
    namque feras aliis tellus Maurusia donum
    praebuit, huic soli debet sed victa tributum.
    dum nos horribiles Libyae scrutamur alumnos,                       280
    Europae vos interea perquirite saltus
    et scopulos. posita ludat formidine pastor
    securisque canat Stilichonem fistula silvis.
    pacet muneribus montes qui legibus urbes.”
      Dixit et extemplo frondosa fertur ab Alpe                        285
    trans pelagus; cervi currum subiere iugales,
    quos decus esse deae primi sub limine caeli
    roscida fecundis concepit Luna cavernis:
    par nitor intactis nivibus; frons discolor auro
    germinat et spatio summas aequantia fagos                          290
    cornua ramoso surgunt procera metallo.
    Opis frena tenet, fert retia rara Lycaste
    auratasque plagas, inmortalesque Molossi
    latrantes mediis circum iuga nubibus ibant.
    quinque aliae paribus (Phoebe sic iusserat) armis                  295
    diversa regione ruunt ducitque cohortem
    quaeque suam. variae formis et gente sequuntur
    ingenioque canes. illae gravioribus aptae
    morsibus, hae pedibus celeres, hae nare sagaces,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 63

wonted hunting and the blood of our prey be spilled but in the arena.
Not for now their death; close the glades with net and cages and lead
the beasts captive; withhold your impatient arrows; spare the monsters
of the forest whose death shall win applause for our consul. Divide
and haste in every direction; my breathless course is towards the
Syrtes; do you, Cretan Lycaste and Opis, bear me company. My purpose
is to traverse the unfruitful desert; Mauretania has given ere now her
animals to other consuls as a gift, to this consul alone she owes them
as a conquered land owes tribute. While we track out the dread progeny
of Libya do you hunt the glades and rocks of Europe. Let joy banish
fear from the shepherd’s breast and his pipe hymn Stilicho in the
dreadless forests. As his laws have given peace to the cities so let
his shows give peace to the mountains.”

She spake and straightway is borne from the leafy Alps across the sea.
Hinds bow their necks to her chariot’s yoke, hinds whom the dewy moon
conceived in her fertile caverns beneath the threshold of the morning
sky to be the glory of the goddess. White their skins as driven snow;
gold marks their foreheads whence spring branching golden horns lofty
as the tallest beech-trees. Opis holds the reins. Lycaste carries the
fine-wrought nets and golden snares, and deathless Molossian hounds run
barking about the chariot amid the clouds. Five others thus equipped
(such were Diana’s orders) hasten this way and that, each at the head
of her own company; there follow them dogs of various shape, breed and
character; some whose heavy jowls fit them for big game, some swift of
foot,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 64

    hirsutaeque fremunt Cressae tenuesque Lacaenae                     300
    magnaque taurorum fracturae colla Britannae.
    Dalmatiae lucos abruptaque brachia Pindi
    sparsa comam Britomartis agit. tu Gallica cingis
    lustra, Leontodame, Germanorumque paludes
    eruis et si quis defensus harundine Rheni                          305
    vastus aper nimio dentes curvaverat aevo.
    nubiferas Alpes Appenninique recessus
    Garganique nives Hecaërge prompta fatigat.
    speluncas canibus Thero rimatur Hiberas
    informesque cavis ursos detrudit ab antris,                        310
    quorum saepe Tagus manantes sanguine rictus
    non satiavit aquis et quos iam frigore segnes
    Pyrenaea tegit latebrosis frondibus ilex.
    Cyrnaeis Siculisque iugis venata virago
    Nebrophone cervos aliasque in vincula cogit                        315
    non saevas pecudes, sed luxuriantis harenae
    delicias, pompam nemorum.
                            Quodcumque tremendum
    dentibus aut insigne iubis aut nobile cornu
    aut rigidum saetis, capitur decus omne timorque
    silvarum. non cauta latent, non mole resistunt                     320
    fortia, non volucri fugiunt pernicia cursu.
    haec laqueis innexa gemunt; haec clausa feruntur
    ilignis domibus. fabri nec tigna polire
    sufficiunt; rudibus fagis texuntur et ornis
    frondentes caveae. ratibus pars ibat onustis                       325
    per freta vel fluvios: exanguis dextera torpet
    remigis et propriam metuebat navita mercem.
    per terram pars ducta rotis, longoque morantur

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 65

some keen of scent; shaggy Cretans bay, slender Spartans, and Britons
that can break the backs of mighty bulls. Britomartis scours the woods
of Dalmatia and the precipitous ridges of Pindus, her hair flying in
the wind. Thou, Leontodame, surroundest the glades of Gaul and huntest
the marshes of Germany, tracking out any huge boar, his tusks flexed
with age, that may have taken shelter among the sedges that flank the
Rhine. Swift Hecaërge tires the cloud-capped Alps, the valleys of the
Apennines, and the snows of Garganus. Thero with her dogs explores the
caves of Spain and from their recesses ousts the horrid bears of whose
bloody jaws full oft Tagus’ flood has failed to quench the thirst,
and whose bodies, numbed with cold, the holm-oak of the Pyrenees
o’ershadows with its leaves. The manlike maiden Nebrophone hunts the
mountains of Corsica and Sicily and captures deer and other harmless
beasts, beasts that are the joy of the rich amphitheatre and the glory
of the woods.

Whatsoever inspires fear with its teeth, wonder with its mane, awe
with its horns and bristling coat--all the beauty, all the terror of
the forest is taken. Guile protects them not; neither strength nor
weight avails them; their speed saves not the fleet of foot. Some roar
enmeshed in snares; some are thrust into wooden cages and carried off.
There are not carpenters enough to fashion the wood; leafy prisons
are constructed of unhewn beech and elm. Boats laden with some of the
animals traverse seas and rivers; bloodless from terror the rower’s
hand is stayed, for the sailor fears the merchandise he carries. Others
are transported over land in wagons that block the roads with the long
procession,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 66

    ordine plaustra vias montanis plena triumphis
    et fera sollicitis vehitur captiva iuvencis,                       330
    explebat quibus ante famem, quotiensque reflexi
    conspexere boves, pavidi temone recedunt.
      Iamque pererratis Libyae flagrantibus oris
    legerat eximios Phoebi germana leones,
    Hesperidas qui saepe fugant ventoque citatis                       335
    terrificant Atlanta iubis armentaque longe
    vastant Aethiopum quorumque impune fragosa
    murmura pastorum numquam venere per aures.
    non illos taedae ardentes, non strata superne
    lapsuro virgulta solo, non vocibus haedi                           340
    pendentis stimulata fames, non fossa fefellit;
    ultro se voluere capi gaudentque videri
    tantae praeda deae. respirant pascua tandem;
    agricolae reserant iam tuta mapalia Mauri,
    tum virides pardos et cetera colligit Austri                       345
    prodigia inmanesque simul Latonia dentes,
    qui secti ferro in tabulas auroque micantes
    inscripti rutilum caelato consule nomen
    per proceres et vulgus eant. stupor omnibus Indis
    plurimus ereptis elephas inglorius errat                           350
    dentibus: insedit nigra cervice gementum
    et fixum dea quassat ebur penitusque cruentis
    stirpibus avulsis patulos exarmat hiatus,
    ipsos quin etiam nobis miracula vellet
    ducere: sed pigra cunctari mole veretur.                           355
      Tyrrhenas fetus Libycos amplexa per undas

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 67

bearing the spoils of the mountains. The wild beast is borne a captive
by those troubled cattle on whom in times past he sated his hunger, and
each time that the oxen turned and looked at their burden they pull
away in terror from the pole.

By now Phoebus’ sister had wandered o’er the torrid plains of Libya and
chosen out superb lions who had often put the Hesperides to flight,
filled Atlas with alarm at their wind-tossed manes, and plundered far
and wide the flocks of Ethiopia, lions whose terrible cries had never
struck upon the herdsmen’s ears but as heralding their destruction.
To catch them had been used no blazing torches, no twigs strewn over
turf undermined; the voice of a tethered kid had not allured their
hunger nor had a diggèd pit ensnared them: of their own free will they
gave themselves up to capture and rejoiced at being seen the prey of
so great a goddess. At length the countryside breathes again and the
Moorish farmers unbar their now safe huts. Then Latonia collected
grey-spotted[19] leopards and other marvels of the south and huge ivory
tusks which, carved with iron into plaques and inlaid with gold to
form the glistening inscription of the consul’s name, should pass in
procession among lords and commons. All India stood in speechless amaze
to see many an elephant go shorn of the glory of his tusks. Seated
upon their black necks despite their cries the goddess shook the fixèd
ivory and tearing it up from its bloody roots disarmed the monstrous
mouths. Nay, she fain would have brought the elephants themselves as a
spectacle but feared that their vast weight would retard the ships.

Fiercely o’er the Tyrrhene wave echoes the fleet

    [19] Literally “green.” Latin (and Greek) colour epithets are often
    strangely at variance with ours.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 68

    classis torva[20] sonat, caudamque in puppe retorquens
    ad proram iacet usque leo: vix sublevat unum
    tarda ratis! fremitus stagnis auditur in imis
    cunctaque prosiliunt cete terrenaque Nereus                        360
    confert monstra suis et non aequare fatetur.
    aequora sic victor quotiens per rubra Lyaeus
    navigat, intorquet clavum Silenus et acres
    adsudant tonsis Satyri taurinaque pulsu
    Baccharum Bromios invitant tympana remos:                          365
    transtra ligant hederae, malum circumflua vestit
    pampinus, antennis inlabitur ebria serpens,
    perque mero madidos currunt saliuntque rudentes
    lynces et insolitae mirantur carbasa tigres.

    [20] _torva_ Birt; MSS. have _turba_.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 69

that holds the Libyan breed, and, as he coils his tail upon the stern,
a lion stretches to the prow; that single beast the labouring bark can
scarce uplift; deep down below the waters is heard the roaring. Out
rushes the leviathan. Neptune compares these land prodigies to his and
admits that his are not their equal. So whene’er victorious Bacchus
ploughs the Red Sea’s waves, Silenus sways the helm, the urgent Satyrs
sweat upon their oars and the oxhide drums, smitten by the Bacchants,
summon the rowers of Bromius to toil at the thwarts; ivy-wreaths deck
the benches, the pliant vine entwines the mast; a drunken snake glides
out upon the yardarms; lynxes run and leap along the sheets that drip
with wine, and unaccustomed tigers stare in amaze at the canvas.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 70




PANEGYRICUS DE SEXTO CONSULATU HONORII AUGUSTI

PRAEFATIO

(XXVII.)


    Omnia, quae sensu volvuntur vota diurno,
      pectore sopito reddit amica quies.
    venator defessa toro cum membra reponit,
      mens tamen ad silvas et sua lustra redit.
    iudicibus lites, aurigae somnia currus                               5
      vanaque nocturnis meta cavetur equis.
    furto gaudet amans, permutat navita merces
      et vigil elapsas quaerit avarus opes,
    blandaque largitur frustra sitientibus aegris
      inriguus gelido pocula fonte sopor.                               10

    Me quoque Musarum studium sub nocte silenti
      artibus adsuetis sollicitare solet.
    namque poli media stellantis in arce videbar
      ante pedes summi carmina ferre Iovis;
    utque favet somnus, plaudebant numina dictis                        15
      et circumfusi sacra corona chori.
    Enceladus mihi carmen erat victusque Typhoeus:
      hic subit Inarimen, hunc gravis Aetna domat.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 71




PANEGYRIC ON THE SIXTH CONSULSHIP OF THE EMPEROR HONORIUS (A.D. 404)

PREFACE

(XXVII.)


All things that with waking sense desire ponders kindly repose brings
back to the slumbering mind. The huntsman stretches his weary limbs
upon the couch, yet his mind ever returns to the woods where his quarry
lurks. The judge dreams of law-suits, the charioteer of his chariot
the nightly steeds of which he guides past a shadowy turning-point.
The lover repeats love’s mysteries, the merchant makes exchange of
goods, the miser still watchfully grasps at elusive riches, and to
thirsty sufferers all-pervading sleep offers from a cooling spring idly
alluring draughts.

I am a lover of the Muses and in the silent night I too am haunted by
that my accustomed task. For meseemed I stood upon the very summit of
the starry sky and laid my songs at Jove’s feet, and, in the flattery
of sleep, the gods and all the sacred band gathered about Jove’s throne
gave applause to my words. I sang of Enceladus and conquered Typhoeus,
the first a prisoner beneath Inarime, the second oppressed by the
weight of Etna. How

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 72

    quam laetum post bella Iovem susceperat aether
      Phlegraeae referens praemia militiae!                             20

    Additur ecce fides nec me mea lusit imago,
      inrita nec falsum somnia misit ebur.
    en princeps, en orbis apex aequatus Olympo!
      en quales memini, turba verenda, deos!
    fingere nil maius potuit sopor, altaque vati                        25
      conventum caelo praebuit aula parem.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 73

joyous was that Jove whom, after the war with the giants, heaven
welcomed, enriched with the spoils from Phlegra’s field!

My dream has come true; ’twas no vain imagining; nor did the false
ivory gate[21] send forth an unaccomplished dream. Behold our lord,
behold earth towering to heaven’s height! Here before me are gods such
as I then saw, gods worthy of all reverence. Nought greater could
dreams have fancied; this noble assembly offers the poet an audience
like to that of heaven.

    [21] A reference to the famous epilogue of Verg. _Aen._ vi. (ll.
    893-96). Dreams which come through the ivory gate are false, those
    which issue from the gate of horn, true.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 74




PANEGYRICUS

(XXVIII.)


      Aurea Fortunae Reduci si templa priores
    ob reditum vovere ducum, non dignius umquam
    haec dea pro meritis amplas sibi posceret aedes,
    quam sua cum pariter trabeis reparatur et urbi
    maiestas: neque enim campus sollemnis et urna                        5
    luditur in morem, species nec dissona coetu
    aut peregrina nitet simulati iuris imago.
    indigenas habitus nativa palatia sumunt,
    et, patriis plebem castris sociante Quirino,
    Mars augusta sui renovat suffragia campi.                           10
    qualis erit terris, quem mons Euandrius offert
    Romanis avibus, quem Thybris inaugurat, annus?
    quamquam omnes, quicumque tui cognominis, anni
    semper inoffensum dederint successibus omen
    sintque tropaea tuas semper comitata secures,                       15
    hic tamen ante omnes miro promittitur ortu,
    urbis et Augusti geminato numine felix.
    namque velut stellas Babylonia cura salubres
    optima tunc spondet mortalibus edere fata,
    caelicolae cum celsa tenent summoque feruntur                       20

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 75




THE PANEGYRIC

(XXVIII.)


If our ancestors vowed temples to “Home-bringing Fortune” in honour of
the return of their generals, never would this goddess more worthily
claim for her services a noble temple than when their proper majesty
is restored alike to the consulship and to Rome. The annual election
in the Campus Martius is not the accustomed farce, nor see we a consul
of other race than his electors nor a foreigner claiming pretended
rights.[22] The palace now our own wears a native dress, and while
Quirinus associates the people with the armies of Italy, Mars gives
back to his own Field its imperial suffrage. What will the year be
like for mortals that is ushered in by omens on the Palatine Hill
so favourable to true sons of Rome and inaugurated on the banks of
the Tiber? ’Tis true that years marked by thy name have ever been
rich in omens of success and that victory has always accompanied thy
consulship, yet by its wondrous dawn is this year set before all
years, blessed by the twofold deity of Rome and of her Emperor. For as
Babylonian lore gives assurance that propitious stars do then promise
the best fortune to mortals when they hold the summit of the sky and
their course is at the zenith, not dimming their

    [22] Claudian means that this year there is a real election (_cf._
    Lucan, v. 392 for a similar passage) and that the new consul is a
    true Roman.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 76

    cardine nec radios humili statione recondunt:
    haud aliter Latiae sublimis Signifer aulae,
    imperii sidus propria cum sede locavit,
    auget spes Italas; et certius omina surgunt
    victrici concepta solo.
                             Cum pulcher Apollo                         25
    lustrat Hyperboreas Delphis cessantibus aras,
    nil tum Castaliae rivis communibus undae
    dissimiles, vili nec discrepat arbore laurus,
    antraque maesta silent inconsultique recessus.
    at si Phoebus adest et frenis grypha iugalem                        30
    Riphaeo tripodas repetens detorsit ab axe,
    tunc silvae, tunc antra loqui, tunc vivere fontes,
    tunc sacer horror aquis adytisque effunditur Echo
    clarior et doctae spirant praesagia rupes.
    ecce Palatino crevit reverentia monti                               35
    exultatque habitante deo potioraque Delphis
    supplicibus late populis oracula pandit
    atque suas ad signa iubet revirescere laurus.
      Non alium certe decuit rectoribus orbis
    esse larem, nulloque magis se colle potestas                        40
    aestimat et summi sentit fastigia iuris;
    attollens apicem subiectis regia rostris
    tot circum delubra videt tantisque deorum
    cingitur excubiis! iuvat infra tecta Tonantis
    cernere Tarpeia pendentes rupe Gigantas                             45
    caelatasque fores mediisque volantia signa
    nubibus et densum stipantibus aethera templis
    aeraque vestitis numerosa puppe columnis
    consita subnixasque iugis inmanibus aedes,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 77

light by a low position in the sky; so the Standard-bearer of the Latin
palace[23] at _his_ zenith gives hope of a brighter future for Italy in
placing the star of our empire in its true position. Omens that have
their origin in Rome’s victorious soil are the more sure of fulfilment.

When fair Apollo leaves Delphi’s shrine and visits the altars of the
north, Castalia’s waters differ in no wise from those of any common
stream, nor the laurel from any common tree; sad and silent is the
cave and the shrine without a worshipper. But if Phoebus is there,
Phoebus returned from Scythian climes to his Delphic tripod, guiding
thither his yoked griffins, the woods, the caves regain their voice,
the streams their life; the sacred ripple revisits the face of the
waters, a clearer echo resounds from the shrine and the now inspired
rocks tremble to the voice of prophecy. Now the Palatine Mount is
exalted with honour and rejoices in the return of its native deity;
far and wide among the suppliant peoples it spreads oracles surer even
than those of Delphi and bids its laurels grow green again to deck the
standards of Rome.

Of a truth no other city could fitly be the home of the world’s rulers;
on this hill is majesty most herself, and knows the height of her
supreme sway; the palace, raising its head above the forum that lies
at its feet, sees around it so many temples and is surrounded by so
many protecting deities. See below the Thunderer’s temple the Giants
suspended from the Tarpeian rock, behold the sculptured doors, the
cloud-capped statues, the sky-towering temples, the brazen prows of
many a vessel welded on to lofty columns, the temples built on massy
crags where the

    [23] _i.e._ the Emperor. _Signifer_ also means the zodiac. Claudian
    puns on the ambiguity.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 78

    naturam cumulante manu, spoliisque micantes                         50
    innumeros arcus. acies stupet igne metalli
    et circumfuso trepidans obtunditur auro.
      Agnoscisne tuos, princeps venerande, penates?
    haec sunt, quae primis olim miratus in annis
    patre pio monstrante puer. nil optimus ille                         55
    divorum toto meruit felicius aevo,
    quam quod Romuleis victor sub moenibus egit
    te consorte dies, cum se melioribus addens
    exemplis civem gereret terrore remoto,
    alternos cum plebe iocos dilectaque passus                          60
    iurgia patriciasque domos privataque passim
    visere deposito dignatus limina fastu.
    publicus hinc ardescit amor, cum moribus aequis
    inclinat populo regale modestia culmen.
    teque rudem vitae, quamvis diademate necdum                         65
    cingebare comas, socium sumebat honorum
    purpureo fotum gremio, parvumque triumphis
    imbuit et magnis docuit praeludere fatis.
    et linguis variae gentes missique rogatum
    foedera Persarum proceres cum patre sedentem                        70
    hac quondam videre domo positoque tiaram
    summisere genu. tecum praelarga vocavit
    ditandas ad dona tribus; fulgentia tecum
    collecti trabeatus adit delubra senatus
    Romano puerum gaudens offerre favori,                               75
    ut novus imperio iam tunc adsuesceret heres.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 79

hand of man has added to the work of nature, the countless triumphal
arches glittering with spoils. The eyes are dazed by the blaze of metal
and blink outwearied by the surrounding gold.

Adored Prince, dost thou recognize thy house? ’Tis the same that thy
loving sire showed to thy wondering eyes while yet thou wert a boy of
tender years. Never in all his life did Theodosius, best of all the
gods, better deserve our love than when, triumphant over all his foes,
he came with thee to Rome to sojourn within its walls, and there,
following the example of the noblest emperors, lived as a simple
citizen, not seeking to inspire terror by his name but condescending
to exchange banter and harmless raillery with the people and as ready
to lay aside his rank and visit the homes of the poor as to enter the
palaces of the noble. ’Tis thus the public love is kindled when with
just humanity modesty bids royal state stoop to the people. And thee,
while still but a boy, though the crown had not yet encircled thy head,
thy father took to share his honours,[24] cherishing thee in his royal
bosom, giving thy youth its first taste of triumphs and teaching it
the prelude of its mighty destiny. Peoples of every tongue and Persian
chiefs sent to solicit alliance in Rome[25] once saw thee seated with
thy father in this very palace and bowing the knee laid their crowns at
thy feet. Thou wert at his side when he summoned the tribes to receive
a bounteous largess: with thee he entered the hallowed portals of the
assembled senate clad in the consul’s robe, right glad to introduce his
son to the goodwill of the Roman Fathers, that so his youthful heir
might grow familiar with empire.

    [24] Honorius was made Augustus Nov. 20, 393, shortly after his ninth
    birthday.

    [25] The Persians seem to have sent embassies to Rome both in 387 and
    389 (Themistius, _Orat._ xix. p. 227).

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 80

      Hinc tibi concreta radice tenacius haesit
    et penitus totis inolevit Roma medullis,
    dilectaeque urbis tenero conceptus ab ungue
    tecum crevit amor. nec te mutare reversum                           80
    evaluit propria nutritor Bosphorus arce.
    et quotiens optare tibi quae moenia malles
    adludens genitor regni pro parte dedisset,
    divitis Aurorae solium sortemque paratam
    sponte remittebas fratri: “regat ille volentes                      85
    Assyrios; habeat Pharium cum Tigride Nilum;
    contingat mea Roma mihi.” nec vota fefellit
    eventus. Fortuna novum molita tyrannum
    iam tibi quaerebat Latium belloque secundo
    protinus Eoa velox accitus ab aula                                  90
    suscipis Hesperiam patrio bis Marte receptam.
    ipsa per Illyricas urbes Oriente relicto
    ire Serena comes nullo deterrita casu,
    materna te mente fovens Latioque futurum
    rectorem generumque sibi seniore supernas                           95
    iam repetente plagas. illo sub cardine rerum
    sedula servatum per tot discrimina pignus
    restituit sceptris patrui castrisque mariti.
    certavit pietate domus, fidaeque reductum
    coniugis officio Stilichonis cura recepit.                         100
      Felix ille parens, qui te secures Olympum
    succedente petit! quam laetus ab aethere cernit
    se factis crevisse tuis! duo namque fuere

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 81

Hence taking firmer root the love of Rome clung to thee more closely
and grew strong, deep-planted in all thy heart. As thou grewest the
affection which thou hadst found in childhood for the city grew too;
nor was Bosporus, whose cherished town was thy nurse, able on thy
return to seduce thee from that love. Every time that thy sire in sport
gave thee thy choice of whatsoever cities thou didst prefer to govern
as thy share of empire, thou didst leave to thy brother Arcadius the
throne and riches of the East and the lands which by inheritance should
be his. “Let him rule over the servile Assyrians,” thou saidst, “let
Nile, the river of Egypt, and the Tigris be his; let me have my beloved
Rome.” Thy wishes have been fulfilled. Fortune set up a new tyrant
only to ensure for thee the governance of Latium. So soon as ever the
war was brought to a successful conclusion thou wert summoned from the
court of Byzantium to undertake the rule of Italy twice conquered by
thy father’s arms. Serena herself left the East and accompanied thee
in thy journey across Illyria: fearless in face of danger she bestowed
a mother’s care on thee who wert to be lord of Latium and her own
son-in-law after Theodosius’ translation to the sky. She kept careful
guard over the child entrusted to her protection through the dangers of
that critical time and brought thee safe to her uncle’s throne and her
husband’s army. Stilicho and Serena vied in love toward thee and what
Serena’s care had brought safe home Stilicho’s affection welcomed there.

Happy father to enter heaven with no fears for the future; he knew that
thou wert to succeed him. With what joy he looks down from above and
sees his glory enhanced by thine exploits! Europe and

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 82

    Europae Libyaeque hostes: Maurusius Atlas
    Gildonis Furias, Alaricum barbara Peuce                            105
    nutrierat, qui saepe tuum sprevere profana
    mente patrem. Thracum venienti e[26] finibus alter
    Hebri clausit aquas; alter praecepta vocantis
    respuit auxiliisque ad proxima bella negatis
    abiurata palam Libyae possederat arva:                             110
    quorum nunc meritam repetens non inmemor iram
    suppliciis fruitur natoque ultore triumphat.
    ense Thyestiadae poenas exegit Orestes,
    sed mixtum pietate nefas dubitandaque caedis
    gloria, materno laudem cum crimine pensat;                         115
    pavit Iuleos inviso sanguine manes
    Augustus, sed falsa pii praeconia sumpsit
    in luctum patriae civili strage parentans:
    at tibi causa patris rerum coniuncta saluti
    bellorum duplicat laurus, isdemque tropaeis                        120
    reddita libertas orbi, vindicta parenti.
      Sed mihi iam pridem captum Parnasia Maurum
    Pieriis egit fidibus chelys; arma Getarum
    nuper apud socerum plectro celebrata recenti.
    adventus nunc sacra tui libet edere Musis                          125
    grataque patratis exordia sumere bellis.
      Iam Pollentini tenuatus funere campi
    concessaque sibi (rerum sic admonet usus)
    luce, tot amissis sociis atque omnibus una
    direptis opibus, Latio discedere iussus                            130

    [26] Birt prints the _venientem finibus_ of A and B (the other MSS.
    have _veniens e_), and the _aquis_ (l. 108) of the better MSS. I
    have adopted Heinsius’ emendation _venienti_ with some hesitation.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 83

Africa were alike threatened by foes: from Mount Atlas came fierce
Gildo; Alaric from Peuce’s savage isle. Often had both with impious
daring set at nought the commands of thy sire. When he came from the
lands of Thrace Alaric closed against him the waters of the Danube;
Gildo scorned his command and, refusing assistance for a neighbouring
war, had seized on the fields of Libya he had long forsworn. Theodosius
recalls the anger he then justly felt and rejoices to witness their
discomfiture, proud to have his son for his avenger. Orestes’ sword
took vengeance on the son of Thyestes[27]; but guilt was blent with
piety, and the sword-stroke brings doubtful glory when honour is
balanced by a mother’s murder; Augustus sated the shade of Caesar with
his enemies’ blood, but he made a false advertisement of piety when, to
the grief of his fatherland, he offered the blood of citizens to his
father’s ghost. But for thee thy sire’s cause, linked as it is with the
general safety, doubles thy warlike fame; the same victory that has
avenged thy sire has restored peace to the world.

My lyre inspired by the Muses of Pieria has long since sung of the
defeat and capture of the Moor; but of late, too, in Stilicho’s
presence I have celebrated in verse the wars against the Getae. To-day
I would fain sing the glories of thy home-coming and, ceasing to tell
of wars, would prelude a theme of thankfulness.

Alaric, his hopes ruined by his bloody defeat at Pollentia, though
policy dictated that his life should be spared, was nevertheless
deserted by all his allies and bereft of all his resources. He was
forced to leave Latium and to retrace his steps in ruin and

    [27] Aegisthus.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 84

    hostis et inmensi revolutus culmine fati
    turpe retexit iter. qualis piratica puppis,
    quae cunctis infensa fretis scelerumque referta
    divitiis multasque diu populata carinas
    incidit in magnam bellatricemque triremim,                         135
    dum praedam de more putat; viduataque caesis
    remigibus, scissis velorum debilis alis,
    orba gubernaclis, antennis saucia fractis
    ludibrium pelagi vento iactatur et unda,
    vastato tandem poenas luitura profundo:                            140
    talis ab urbe minas retro flectebat inanes
    Italiam fugiens, et quae venientibus ante
    prona fuit, iam difficilis, iam dura reversis.
    clausa putat sibi cuncta pavor, retroque relictos
    quos modo temnebat, rediens exhorruit amnes.                       145

    Undosa tum forte domo vitreisque sub antris
    rerum ignarus adhuc ingentes pectore curas
    volvebat pater Eridanus: quis bella maneret
    exitus? imperiumne Iovi legesque placerent
    et vitae Romana quies, an iura perosus                             150
    ad priscos pecudum damnaret saecula ritus?
    talia dum secum movet anxius, advolat una
    Naiadum resoluta comam, complexaque patrem
    “en Alaricus” ait “non qualem nuper ovantem
    vidimus; exangues, genitor, mirabere vultus.                       155
    percensere manum tantaque ex gente iuvabit
    relliquias numerasse breves. iam desine maesta
    fronte queri Nymphasque choris iam redde sorores.”

    Dixerat; ille caput placidis sublime fluentis
    extulit, et totis lucem spargentia ripis                           160

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 85

disgrace; such was the complete reversal of his fortune.[28] As when a
pirate ship, the terror of every sea, laden with the spoils of violence
and the booty taken from many a captured merchantman, falls in with
a great man-of-war and hopes to secure it for its prey as vessels
heretofore, then indeed crippled by the slaughter of its oarsmen and
the rending of its sails, deprived of its rudder and all but destroyed
by the breaking of its yardarms, it is driven this way and that at the
mercy of wind and wave and at last pays the penalty for its piracy;
even so Alaric turned backwards his vain threatenings, fleeing from
Italy that, once so easy for his advance, was now so difficult for his
retreat. His fear makes him believe every road barred, and rivers,
erstwhile left behind in scorn, fill him with alarm on his return.

Meanwhile, as it fell out, father Eridanus in his watery home beneath
the crystal caverns, ignorant as yet of what had happened, was
pondering weighty cares. What, he wondered, would be the outcome of
the war: would Jove approve empire and law and Rome’s days of peace,
or would he, abhorring order, condemn future ages to the primal ways
of brute beasts? As he anxiously ponders such things one of the Naiads
with hair unbound came and embraced her sire and said, “Alaric is other
now than once we saw him in his hour of triumph: thou wilt wonder at
the pallor of his countenance. Joy it will be to reckon up his army and
number the remains of so great a host. Frown no more nor complain; let
my sister nymphs once more enjoy their dances.”

So spake she and he lifted his gracious head above the gliding stream
and on his dripping forehead

    [28] Claudian did not live to see the next “reversal of fortune,”
    Alaric’s capture of Rome six years later.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 86

    aurea roranti micuerunt cornua vultu.
    non illi madidum vulgaris harundine crinem
    velat honos; rami caput umbravere virentes
    Heliadum totisque fluunt electra capillis.
    palla tegit latos umeros, curruque paterno                         165
    intextus Phaëthon glaucos incendit amictus.
    fultaque sub gremio caelatis nobilis astris
    aetherium probat urna decus. namque omnia luctus
    argumenta sui Titan signavit Olympo:
    mutatumque senem plumis et fronde sorores                          170
    et fluvium, nati qui vulnera lavit anheli;
    stat gelidis Auriga plagis; vestigia fratris
    germanae servant Hyades, Cygnique sodalis
    lacteus extentas adspergit circulus alas;
    stelliger Eridanus sinuatis flexibus errans                        175
    clara Noti convexa rigat gladioque tremendum
    gurgite sidereo subterluit Oriona.

    Hoc deus effulgens habitu prospexit euntes
    deiecta cervice Getas; tunc talia fatur:
    “sicine mutatis properas, Alarice, reverti                         180
    consiliis? Italae sic te iam paenitet orae?
    nec iam cornipedem Thybrino gramine pascis,
    ut rebare, tuum? Tuscis nec figis aratrum
    collibus? o cunctis Erebi dignissime poenis,
    tune Giganteis urbem temptare deorum                               185
    adgressus furiis? nec te meus, improbe, saltem
    terruit exemplo Phaëthon, qui fulmina praeceps
    in nostris efflavit aquis, dum flammea caeli

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 87

gleamed the golden horns that cast their brilliance all along the
banks. No common crown of reeds adorned his oozy locks. The green
branches of the daughters of the sun[29] shadowed his head and amber
dripped from all his hair. A cloak was flung over his broad shoulders,
a cloak whose grey texture was set aflame with an embroidery of
Phaëthon and his father’s chariot. Resting beneath his breast an urn
glorious with engraved stars makes clear its heaven-sent beauty. For
there Phoebus had set in the sky all the sad stories of his woe: Cycnus
changed into a swan, Phaëthon’s sisters transformed into trees, and
the river that washed the wounds of his dying son; the charioteer is
there in his icy zone, the Hyades follow on their brother’s traces,
while the Milky Way sprinkles the outstretched wings of Cycnus who
bears him company; the constellation of Eridanus[30] himself wets the
clear southern sky in its tortuous course and with starry stream flows
beneath Orion’s dread sword.

Glorious in such guise the god looked forth and saw the Getae advancing
with bowed necks. Then he spake: “What, Alaric, hast thou then changed
thy plans? Why hastenest thou back? Art wearied so soon of the coasts
of Italy? Feedest thou not thy horses on Tiber’s grassy bank as thou
thoughtest to do? Drivest not the plough on Etruria’s hills? Fit object
of all the punishments of Hell, thinkest thou to attack the city of the
gods with a Giant’s rage? If none other, was not my Phaëthon a warning
to thee, Phaëthon fall’n from heaven to quench his flames in my waters,
what time he

    [29] The poplar.

    [30] Eridanus was a mythical river of the far West, generally
    identified with the Latin Padus (mod. Po). Phaëthon is said to
    have fallen into it when he attempted to drive the horses of his
    father, the sun. After this Eridanus, the river god, became a
    constellation--hence Eridanus is said to “wet” the southern sky.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 88

    flectere terrenis meditatur frena lacertis
    mortalique diem sperat diffundere vultu?                           190
    crede mihi, simili bacchatur crimine, quisquis
    adspirat Romae spoliis aut Solis habenis.”
      Sic fatus Ligures Venetosque erectior amnes
    magna voce ciet. frondentibus umida ripis
    colla levant: pulcher Ticinus et Addua visu                        195
    caerulus et velox Athesis tardusque meatu
    Mincius inque novem consurgens ora Timavus.
    insultant omnes profugo pacataque laetum
    invitant ad prata pecus; iam Pana Lycaeum,
    iam Dryadas revocant et rustica numina Faunos.                     200
      Tu quoque non parvum Getico, Verona, triumpho
    adiungis cumulum, nec plus Pollentia rebus
    contulit Ausoniis aut moenia vindicis Hastae.
    hic, rursus dum pacta movet damnisque coactus
    extremo mutare parat praesentia casu,                              205
    nil sibi periurum sensit prodesse furorem
    converti nec fata loco, multisque suorum
    diras pavit aves, inimicaque corpora volvens
    Ionios Athesis mutavit sanguine fluctus.
      Oblatum Stilicho violato foedere Martem                          210
    omnibus adripuit votis, ubi Roma periclo
    iam procul et belli medio Padus arbiter ibat.
    iamque opportunam motu strepuisse rebelli
    gaudet perfidiam praebensque exempla labori
    sustinet accensos aestivo pulvere soles.                           215
    ipse manu metuendus adest inopinaque cunctis

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 89

sought with mortal hand to hold the fiery reins of the sky and hoped to
spread day’s brilliance from a mortal countenance? ’Tis the same mad
crime, I tell thee, whosoever aspires to spoil Rome or drive the sun’s
chariot.”

So spake he, and rising yet farther out of the stream he loudly
summoned the rivers of Liguria and Venetia. These raise their dripping
heads from among their leafy banks, fair Ticinus, blue Addua, swift
Athesis, slow Mincius, and Timavus with his nine mouths. All mock at
the fugitive and recall the happy flocks to the now peaceful meadows;
Lycaean Pan is bidden to return and the Dryads and Fauns, gods of the
countryside.

Thou too, Verona,[31] didst add no small makeweight to Rome’s victory
over the Getae; not even Pollentia nor the walls of avenging Hasta did
more for the salvation of Italy. Here, as once again he breaks his
bond, and driven by his losses risks all in the attempt to change his
present fortune, Alaric learned that his mad treachery availed him
nothing and that change of place changes not destiny. The vultures
fed on the countless bodies of his slain, and Athesis, carrying down
the corpses of Rome’s enemies in its stream, turned the waters of the
Ionian sea into blood.

The treaty violated, Stilicho with all eagerness grasped at the
conflict proffered where Rome was now far away from danger and Padus
flowed between witnessing the strife. He rejoices that now opportune
treachery has broken out in rebellious risings and, setting an example
of endurance, he shirks neither fiery sun nor scorching dust. Himself
he is everywhere with dreadful arm; he stations troops

    [31] The chroniclers do not mention this battle. It is probably to be
    attributed to the summer of 403.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 90

    instruit arma locis et qua vocat usus ab omni
    parte venit. fesso si deficit agmine miles,
    utitur auxiliis damni securus, et astu
    debilitat saevum cognatis viribus Histrum                          220
    et duplici lucro committens proelia vertit
    in se barbariem nobis utrimque cadentem.
    ipsum te caperet letoque, Alarice, dedisset,
    ni calor incauti male festinatus Alani
    dispositum turbasset opus; prope captus anhelum                    225
    verbere cogis equum, nec te vitasse dolemus.
    i potius genti reliquus tantisque superstes
    Danuvii populis, i, nostrum vive tropaeum.
      Non tamen ingenium tantis se cladibus atrox
    deicit: occulto temptabat tramite montes,                          230
    si qua per scopulos subitas exquirere posset
    in Raetos Gallosque vias. sed fortior obstat
    cura ducis. quis enim divinum fallere pectus
    possit et excubiis vigilantia lumina regni?
    cuius consilium non umquam repperit hostis                         235
    nec potuit texisse suum. secreta Getarum
    nosse prior celerique dolis occurrere sensu.
      Omnibus exclusus coeptis consedit in uno
    colle tremens; frondesque licet depastus amaras
    arboreo figat sonipes in cortice morsus                            240
    et taetris collecta cibis annique vapore

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 91

at every point, even where the enemy little expected them, and hastens
in any and every direction to the succour of him who needs it. If the
soldiers flag with wearied ranks he throws the auxiliaries into the
line heedless of their loss; thus he cunningly weakens the savage
tribes of the Danube by opposing one tribe to another and with twofold
gain joins battle that turns barbarians against themselves to perish
in either army for our sake. Thee too, Alaric, he had captured and
delivered over to death had not the hasty zeal of the rash Alan chief
upset his carefully laid scheme. All but a prisoner thou dost lash thy
panting steed, nor do we regret that escape. Rather get thee gone, thou
last remnant of thy race, sole survivor of so many Danubian tribes; get
thee gone, the living witness of Rome’s triumph.

Yet was his[32] fierce spirit not cast down by these great reverses;
he still attempted to discover an unknown path across the mountains,
hoping that over their rocky summits he might fall suddenly on the
peoples of Raetia and Gaul. But Stilicho’s more soldierly vigilance
put a stop to his projects. Who indeed could hope to deceive that
unsleeping brain, those godlike eyes that watched o’er Italy? Never
did an enemy succeed in discovering Stilicho’s plans or had power to
conceal his own. Before they knew them themselves the secrets of the
Getae were known to Stilicho, whose generalship was quick to meet their
every ruse.

Baulked in every attempt Alaric camped panic-stricken on a single hill.
Though the horses, feeding on bitter leaves, gnawed even the tree-bark,
though pestilence raged, brought on by foul food and

    [32] _i.e._ Alaric’s.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 92

    saeviat aucta lues et miles probra superbus
    ingerat obsesso captivaque pignora monstret:
    non tamen aut morbi tabes aut omne periclum
    docta subire fames aut praedae luctus ademptae                     245
    aut pudor aut dictis movere procacibus irae,
    ut male temptato totiens se credere campo
    comminus auderet. nulla est victoria maior,
    quam quae confessos animo quoque subiugat hostes.
    iamque frequens rarum decerpere transfuga robur                    250
    coeperat inque dies numerus decrescere castris,
    nec iam deditio paucis occulta parari,
    sed cunei totaeque palam discedere turmae.
    consequitur vanoque fremens clamore retentat
    cumque suis iam bella gerit; mox nomina supplex                    255
    cum fletu precibusque ciet veterumque laborum
    admonet et frustra iugulum parcentibus offert,
    defixoque malis animo sua membra suasque
    cernit abire manus: qualis Cybeleia quassans
    Hyblaeus procul aera senex revocare fugaces                        260
    tinnitu conatur apes, quae sponte relictis
    descivere favis, sonituque exhaustus inani
    raptas mellis opes solitaeque oblita latebrae
    perfida deplorat vacuis examina ceris.
      Ergo ubi praeclusae voci laxata remisit                          265
    frena dolor, notas oculis umentibus Alpes
    adspicit et nimium diversi stamine fati

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 93

aggravated by the season’s heat, though the soldiers arrogantly heaped
abuse on their beleaguered leader and reminded him of their captured
children; yet neither the ravages of disease nor famine that teaches
men to face all dangers, nor grief for spoils lost, nor the voice of
shame nor anger at bitter gibes could tempt him to brave the perils
of a hand-to-hand fight, tried so often before and with such ill
success. What triumph more complete than that of extorting from a
conquered foe the admission that he is conquered? And now numbers of
deserters began to weaken his already reduced strength and day by day
his forces were diminished. Sedition was not now the hidden work of
a few but meant the open defection of whole sections and squadrons.
Their general rides after them and with angry curses and vain clamour
seeks to hold them back, waging war now on his own troops. He weeps,
calls the men by name, recalls them with prayers and supplications; he
reminds them of past campaigns and all to no purpose offers his throat
to their reluctant hands. His mind a prey to melancholy he sees his
forces desert him, his army melt away, even as an old bee-master of
Hybla, beating Cybele’s gong, tries, by means of that noise, to recall
his scattered bees who have wantonly left their combs and fled the
hive, till, himself wearied of the useless sound, he weeps the loss
of his store of honey and cries out upon the faithless swarm that has
forgotten its accustomed home and left its cells empty.

And so when grief loosed the string of his tongue that had long been
mute he looked with tear-dimmed eyes upon the well-known Alps and
pondered upon his present retreat, attended by a fate so different

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 94

    praesentes reditus fortunatosque revolvit
    ingressus: solo peragens tum murmure bellum
    protento leviter frangebat moenia conto                            270
    inridens scopulos; nunc desolatus et expes
    debita pulsato reddit spectacula monti.
    tunc sic Ausonium respectans aethera fatur:
      “Heu regio funesta Getis, heu terra sinistris
    auguriis calcata mihi, satiare nocentum                            275
    cladibus et tandem nostris inflectere poenis!
    en ego, qui toto sublimior orbe ferebar
    ante tuum felix aditum, ceu legibus exul
    addictusque reus flatu propiore sequentum
    terga premor. quae prima miser, quae funera dictis
    posteriora querar? non me Pollentia tantum                         281
    nec captae cruciastis opes; hoc aspera fati
    sors tulerit Martisque vices. non funditus armis
    concideram; stipatus adhuc equitumque catervis
    integer ad montes reliquo cum robore cessi,                        285
    quos Appenninum perhibent. hunc esse ferebat
    incola, qui Siculum porrectus ad usque Pelorum
    finibus ab Ligurum populos complectitur omnes
    Italiae geminumque latus stringentia longe
    utraque perpetuo discriminat aequora tractu.                       290
    haec ego continuum si per iuga tendere cursum,
    ut prior iratae fuerat sententia menti,
    iam desperata voluissem luce, quid ultra?
    omnibus oppeterem fama maiore perustis!
    et certe moriens propius te, Roma, viderem,                        295
    ipsaque per cultas segetes mors nostra secuto
    victori damnosa foret. sed pignora nobis

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 95

from that which had prospered his advance. Then with a single whisper
he made war, with an outstretched spear lightly overthrew walls,
making a mock of precipices; now deserted and in despair he offered
a just spectacle to the mountains he had so scornfully crossed. Then
looking up at the sky of Italy he said: “Land of death for the Getae,
trod by me with such omens of disaster, let thy wrath be now appeased
by the sacrifice of so many of the guilty; let my sufferings at last
excite thy compassion. Behold me, once lord of the world, the friend
of fortune till I invaded thee; now, like an exile or an adjudged
criminal, I feel upon my back the nearer breath of my pursuers. Alas!
which of my disasters shall I lament first, which last? Not thou,
Pollentia, nor ye, my captured treasures, have thus tortured me; be
that destiny’s harsh lot or the chance of war. I had not then lost
all my forces; with troops still at my back, with my cavalry intact,
I retired with the remnant of my army to the hills they call the
Apennines. Its inhabitants told me that this mountain stretched from
the confines of Liguria as far as the promontory of Pelorus in Sicily
and embraced all the peoples of Italy, dividing with its unbroken chain
the two seas that wash their country’s two coasts. If I had pursued
the plan that anger first dictated to me and had in my desperation
continued my march along its crest, what lay beyond? Giving everything
to the flames I might have died with loftier fame. Ay, and my dying
eyes had beheld thee, Rome, from not so far away, and my very death
would have cost the victor dear as he pursued me over the well-tilled
cornfields. But Rome held my

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 96

    Romanus carasque nurus praedamque tenebat.
    hoc magis exertum raperem succinctior agmen.
      “Heu, quibus insidiis, qua me circumdedit arte                   300
    fatalis semper Stilicho! dum parcere fingit,
    rettudit[33] hostiles animos bellumque remenso
    evaluit transferre Pado. pro foedera saevo
    deteriora iugo! tunc vis extincta Getarum;
    tunc mihi, tunc letum pepigi. violentior armis                     305
    omnibus expugnat nostram clementia gentem,
    Mars gravior sub pace latet, capiorque vicissim
    fraudibus ipse meis. quis iam solacia fesso
    consiliumve dabit? socius suspectior hoste.
      “Atque utinam cunctos licuisset perdere bello!                   310
    nam quisquis duro cecidit certamine, numquam
    desinit esse meus. melius mucrone perirent,
    auferretque mihi luctu leviore sodales
    victa manus quam laesa fides. nullusne clientum
    permanet? offensi comites, odere propinqui.                        315
    quid moror invisam lucem? qua sede recondam
    naufragii fragmenta mei? quaeve arva requiram,
    in quibus haud umquam Stilicho nimiumque potentis
    Italiae nomen nostras circumsonet aures?”
      Haec memorans instante fugam Stilichone tetendit
    expertas horrens aquilas; comitatur euntem                         321
    Pallor et atra Fames et saucia lividus ora
    Luctus et inferno stridentes agmine Morbi.
    lustralem tum rite facem, cui lumen odorum

    [33] _rettudit_ Isengr. mg.; Birt reads _rettulit_, following EVA.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 97

children captive, my wives, my wealth--yet, freed from such hindrances,
my advance had been the more rapid.

“With what cunning, with what skill, did Stilicho, that ever fatal
enemy, ensnare me! His pretended mercy did but blunt my warlike spirit,
and availed him to shift the war backwards across the Po. A curse on
that armistice, more damaging than the yoke of slavery. ’Twas then the
cause of the Getae was undone, then that I signed my own death-warrant.
More rudely than any weapon did mercy destroy our people, beneath that
semblance of peace lay the deadliest form of war, and I myself fell
into the snare I had laid for others. I am weary of it all; where shall
I find comfort or counsel? I fear my friends more than my foes.

“Would God I had lost them all on that field. He is ever mine that
has fallen in hard conflict. Better all had perished by the sword;
less bitter had been my grief for losses inflicted by a victorious foe
than for those brought upon me by treachery. Is there not left one
faithful follower? My comrades have turned against me, my friends hate
me. My life is a burden; why prolong it? Where hide the remnants of
my shipwrecked fortunes? To what land shall I flee where the names of
Stilicho and all too powerful Italy shall not sound for ever in mine
ears?”

So spake he, and with Stilicho pressing hard upon him fled in terror
before our eagles. With him goes Pallor, black Hunger, Despair with
bloodless, wounded countenance and a hellish company of shrieking
Diseases. Then the learnèd priest whirls around the sick body[34] the
torch of purification

    [34] _i.e._ the sick body of Italy which has to be purified after
    the polluting presence of Alaric. With “rore pio spargens” _cf._
    Verg. _Aen._ vi. 230, and for the throwing over the head of the
    purificatory instrument see Verg. _Ec._ viii. 102.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 98

    sulphure caeruleo nigroque bitumine fumat,                         325
    circum membra rotat doctus purganda sacerdos
    rore pio spargens, et dira fugantibus herbis
    numina purificumque Iovem Triviamque precatus
    trans caput aversis manibus iaculatur in Austrum
    secum rapturas cantata piacula taedas.                             330

    Acrior interea visendi principis ardor
    accendit cum plebe patres et saepe negatum
    flagitat adventum; nec tali publica vota
    consensu tradunt atavi caluisse per urbem,
    Dacica bellipotens cum fregerat Ulpius arma                        335
    atque indignantes in iura redegerat Arctos,
    cum fasces cinxere Hypanin mirataque leges
    Romanum stupuit Maeotia terra tribunal.
    nec tantis patriae studiis ad templa vocatus,
    clemens Marce, redis, cum gentibus undique cinctam
    exuit Hesperiam paribus Fortuna periclis.                          341
    laus ibi nulla ducum; nam flammeus imber in hostem
    decidit; hunc dorso trepidum fumante ferebat
    ambustus sonipes; hic tabescente solutus
    subsedit galea liquefactaque fulgure cuspis                        345
    canduit et subitis fluxere vaporibus enses.
    tum contenta polo mortalis nescia teli
    pugna fuit: Chaldaea mago seu carmina ritu
    armavere deos, seu, quod reor, omne Tonantis
    obsequium Marci mores potuere mereri.                              350
    nunc quoque praesidium Latio non deesset Olympi,
    deficeret si nostra manus; sed providus aether

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 99

with its smoky, odorous flame of blue sulphur and black bitumen;
he sprinkles the limbs with holy water and with herbs that banish
evil influences and, praying to Jove the Purifier and to Diana, with
back-turned hands throws over his head towards the South the torches
which are to carry off with them the spells cast over the sick.

Meanwhile the ardent desire of both senate and people to behold their
emperor demands his often denied return. Not with such consent, our
grandsires report, were public vows eagerly offered throughout the
city when warlike Trajan had broken the power of Dacia and reduced
the indignant north once more to subjection, what time the Scythian
river Hypanis beheld the Roman axes and Lake Maeotis looked in amaze
on a Roman court administering Roman law. It was a lesser enthusiasm
which recalled the gentle Marcus Aurelius to give thanks in Rome’s
temples for Fortune’s deliverance of Italy from a similar pressure of
surrounding nations. Then ’twas no thanks to the generals: one man his
scorched courser bore trembling on its smoking back; another sank down
beneath his fire-wasted helmet; spears glowed molten by lightning and
swords vanished suddenly into smoke. Heaven it was that fought that
battle with no mortal weapons, whether it was that Chaldean seers[35]
had by their magic spells won over the gods to our side or, as I rather
think, that Marcus’ blameless life had power to win the Thunder’s
homage. To-day, also, assuredly Heaven’s favour would not be wanting to
Latium should our own hand fail, but a beneficent providence has

    [35] Claudian refers to the famous legend of the “Thundering”
    legion, saved from dying of lack of water by a miraculous
    rain-storm. This miracle occurred during M. Aurelius’ war against
    the Marcomanni (_circ._ A.D. 175) and is attributed (1) to the
    prayers of the Christians; (2) to an Egyptian magician on Marcus’
    staff (Dio Cassius lxxi. 8. 10); (3) to the emperor’s own prayers.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 100

    noluit humano titulos auferre labori,
    ne tibi iam, princeps, soceri sudore paratam,
    quam meruit virtus, ambirent fulmina laurum.                       355

    Iam totiens missi proceres responsa morandi
    rettulerant, donec differri longius urbis
    communes non passa preces penetralibus altis
    prosiluit vultusque palam confessa coruscos
    impulit ipsa suis cunctantem Roma querellis:                       360

    “Dissimulata diu tristes in amore repulsas
    vestra parens, Auguste, queror. quonam usque tenebit
    praelatus mea vota Ligus? vetitumque propinqua
    luce frui, spatiis discernens gaudia parvis,
    torquebit Rubicon vicino nomine Thybrim?                           365
    nonne semel sprevisse satis, cum reddita bellis
    Africa venturi lusit spe principis urbem
    nec duras tantis precibus permovimus aures?
    ast ego frenabam geminos, quibus altior ires,
    electi candoris equos et nominis arcum                             370
    iam molita tui, per quem radiante decorus
    ingrederere toga, pugnae monumenta dicabam
    defensam titulo Libyam testata perenni.
    iamque parabantur pompae simulacra futurae
    Tarpeio spectanda Iovi: caelata metallo                            375
    classis ut auratum sulcaret remige fluctum,
    ut Massyla tuos anteirent oppida currus

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 101

shown itself unwilling to rob human endeavour of its honour or to
let the lightning win the crown of laurel which the efforts of thy
father-in-law, Stilicho, have secured for thy brows.

Full often had the nobles, sent to urge thy return, brought back the
answer that as yet thou couldst not come, until Rome herself, unable
to bear any longer the frustration of her citizens’ common prayer,
came forth from the depths of her sanctuary and, openly displaying her
radiant face, urged the hesitating emperor with complaints of her own.
“Too long, my emperor, have I, thy mother, borne in silence the hurt
thy refusal to return hath done me. How long shall favoured Liguria
possess that for which I desire? How long shall the Rubicon, separating
me from the object of my prayers by so narrow a space, torture the
Tiber by the all-but-presence of that divine being whose nearer sojourn
it is not allowed to enjoy? Was it not enough to have scorned me once
when Africa, again at war, mocked the city with hopes of its emperor’s
coming, nor could we move thine obstinate ears with all our prayers?
Yet did I harness for thee two steeds whiter than snow to draw the
chariot wherein thou shouldst ride; already had I builded in thy name
a triumphal arch through the which thou shouldst pass clad in the garb
of victory, and I was dedicating it as a memorial of the war with an
inscription to be the undying witness of the salvation of Libya. Even
then were being prepared for Jove to see from the Tarpeian rock models
for the coming triumph: a fleet of ships was cast in metal, ships whose
oar-blades smote the golden sea; the cities of Africa were made to go
before thy chariot and

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 102

    Palladiaque comas innexus harundine Triton
    edomitis veheretur aquis et in aere trementem
    succinctae famulum ferrent Atlanta cohortes,                       380
    ipse Iugurthinam subiturus carcere poenam
    praeberet fera colla iugo, vi captus et armis,
    non Bocchi Syllaeque dolis.
                                “Sed prima remitto.
    num praesens etiam Getici me laurea belli
    declinare potest? sedesve capacior ulla                            385
    tantae laudis erit? tua te benefacta morantem
    conveniunt, meritisque suis obnoxia virtus
    quod servavit amat. iam flavescentia centum
    messibus aestivae detondent Gargara falces,
    spectatosque iterum nulli celebrantia ludos                        390
    circumflexa rapit centenus saecula consul:
    his annis, qui lustra mihi bis dena recensent,
    nostra ter Augustos intra pomeria vidi,
    temporibus variis; eadem sed causa tropaei
    civilis dissensus erat. venere superbi,                            395
    scilicet ut Latio respersos sanguine currus
    adspicerem! quisquamne piae laetanda parenti
    natorum lamenta putet? periere tyranni,
    sed nobis periere tamen. cum Gallica vulgo
    proelia iactaret, tacuit Pharsalica Caesar.                        400
    namque inter socias acies cognataque signa
    ut vinci miserum, numquam vicisse decorum.
    restituat priscum per te iam gloria morem
    verior, et fructum sincerae laudis ab hoste

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 103

Triton, with his conquered waters and his head crowned with Minerva’s
sacred reeds; crowds of slaves with upgirt dresses bore a figure of
trembling Atlas cast in bronze; Gildo himself, destined to undergo in
prison the punishment once meted out to Jugurtha, offered his stubborn
neck to the yoke, Gildo fallen a captive to the arms of Rome, not to
the treachery of a Bocchus and a Sulla.[36]

“But I pass over what has been. Can the present triumph, too, of the
Getic war escape me? Does any spot give ampler room to so great renown?
The very blessings thou hast bestowed beg thee not to delay, and thy
generosity, constrained by its own fair deeds, must needs love those
whom it has saved. Now for a hundred summers the reaper’s sickle
has gathered the yellow harvest of Gargarus; already the consul has
introduced the games that occur but once in a century and upon which
no man looks twice. During these years which number twice ten lustres,
I have but thrice[37] seen an emperor enter my walls in triumph; all
at different times but for the same reason--civil war. Did they come
in their pride that I should see their chariots stained with Italy’s
blood? Can any think a mother finds joy in the tears of her offspring?
The tyrants were slain, but even they were my children. Caesar boasted
him of his victories over the Gauls; he said nought about Pharsalia.
Where the two sides bear the same standards and are of one blood, as
defeat is ever shameful so victory brings no honour. See thou to it
that now a truer glory crown our arms; give me back the joy, long a
stranger to me, of honest

    [36] Bocchus, king of Mauretania, treacherously delivered up his
    kinsman Jugurtha to Marius. Sulla acted as the agent of the Roman
    general in this matter.

    [37] In a century so replete with civil war as the fourth it is
    hard to say which particular three instances Claudian has in mind.
    One is no doubt Constantine’s defeat of Maxentius, after which we
    know that he entered Rome in triumph; the other two may refer to
    Theodosius’ victories over Eugenius and Maximus.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 104

    desuetam iam redde mihi iustisque furoris                          405
    externi spoliis sontes absolve triumphos.
      “Quem, precor, ad finem laribus seiuncta potestas
    exulat imperiumque suis a sedibus errat?
    cur mea quae cunctis tribuere palatia nomen
    neglecto squalent senio? nec creditur orbis                        410
    illinc posse regi? medium non deserit umquam
    caeli Phoebus iter, radiis tamen omnia lustrat.
    segnius an veteres Histrum Rhenumque tenebant,
    qui nostram coluere domum? leviusve timebant
    Tigris et Euphrates, cum foedera Medus et Indus                    415
    hinc peteret pacemque mea speraret ab arce?
    hic illi mansere viri, quos mutua virtus
    legit et in nomen Romanis rebus adoptans
    iudicio pulchram seriem, non sanguine duxit;
    hic proles atavum deducens Aelia Nervam                            420
    tranquillique Pii bellatoresque Severi.
    hunc civis dignare chorum conspectaque dudum
    ora refer, pompam recolens ut mente priorem,
    quem tenero patris comitem susceperat aevo,                        424
    nunc duce cum socero iuvenem te Thybris adoret.”
      Orantem medio princeps sermone refovit:
    “numquam aliquid frustra per me voluisse dolebis,
    o dea, nec legum fas est occurrere matri.
    sed nec post Libyam (falsis ne perge querellis
    incusare tuos) patriae mandata vocantis                            430
    sprevimus: advectae misso Stilichone curules,
    ut nostras tibi, Roma, vices pro principe consul
    impleret generoque socer. vidistis in illo

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                              Page 105

fame won from the enemy, and make good guilty triumphs by the lawful
spoils of foreign madness.

“How long shall our emperor’s rule be a stranger to its true home and
his governance stray from its rightful seat? Why does my palace which
has given its name to all palaces mourn in neglected decay? Cannot
the world be ruled therefrom? Phoebus never deserts his centre path
though his beams are shed upon all. Was the hand of those old emperors
who made me their home any lighter laid upon the tribes of Danube and
Rhine? Was the awe felt by those of Tigris and Euphrates any less
real when Mede and Indian came to this my capital of Rome to beg for
alliance or sue for peace? Here dwelt those emperors whom merit chose
for merit, and so, adopting them as consuls for the Roman state, made
judgement not blood continue a noble line. Here lived the Aelian family
that traced its descent from Nerva, the peaceful Antonines, the warlike
Severi. Thou art a citizen; disdain not such a band; give us back the
countenance we beheld long since, that Father Tiber, remembering the
glory that was, may with thy father-in-law welcome thee as a man whom
as a boy he saw leave my city at his father’s side.”

While yet she entreated the emperor reassured her with these words:
“Never shalt thou complain that I have been deaf to thine entreaties; I
could not thwart thee, goddess, who art the mother of our laws. Bring
no railing accusation against thy sons. Did I disregard my country’s
call after the African war? Nay, I sent thee Stilicho to sit in the
curule chair to take my place, a consul instead of an emperor, a
father- instead of a son-in-law. In him thy

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                              Page 106

    me quoque; sic credit pietas non sanguine solo,
    sed claris potius factis experta parentem.                         435
    cuncta quidem centum nequeam perstringere linguis,
    quae pro me mundoque gerit; sed ab omnibus unum,
    si fama necdum patuit, te, Roma, docebo
    subiectum nostris oculis et cuius agendi
    spectator vel causa fui.                                           440
                              “Populator Achivae
    Bistoniaeque plagae, crebris successibus amens
    et ruptas animis spirans inmanibus Alpes
    iam Ligurum trepidis admoverat agmina muris
    tutior auxilio brumae (quo gentibus illis
    sidere consueti favet inclementia caeli)                           445
    meque minabatur calcato obsidere vallo
    spem vano terrore fovens, si forte, remotis
    praesidiis, urgente metu, qua vellet obirem
    condicione fidem; nec me timor impulit ullus
    et duce venturo fretum memoremque tuorum,                          450
    Roma, ducum, quibus haud umquam vel morte parata
    foedus lucis amor pepigit dispendia famae.
    nox erat et late stellarum more videbam
    barbaricos ardere focos; iam classica primos
    excierant vigiles, gelida cum pulcher ab Arcto                     455
    adventat Stilicho. medius sed clauserat hostis
    inter me socerumque viam pontemque tenebat,
    Addua quo scissas spumosior incitat undas.
    quid faceret? differret iter? discrimina nullas
    nostra dabant adeunda moras. perrumperet agmen?
    sed paucis comitatus erat; nam plurima retro,                      461
    dum nobis properat succurrere, liquerat arma
    extera vel nostras acies. hoc ille locatus

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 107

citizens saw also myself; so my love believes, for it has found that
not blood alone but rather glorious deeds can show a parent. Had I a
hundred tongues I could not touch on all the benefits he has bestowed
upon me and upon the empire; one deed alone of them all will I recount
to thee, goddess, if so be it is as yet unknown to thee, a deed of
which I was the spectator or the cause.

“Alaric had laid waste Greece and the coasts of Thrace and in the
mad pride of his many victories and the arrogance inspired by his
crossing of the Alps had laid siege to the trembling cities of Liguria
with winter as his ally--a season that favours a race accustomed to
inclement skies; he then threatened to break down my defences and to
lay strait siege to me also, bolstering up his hopes with the thought
that, at the terror of his name and in fear of having none to aid me,
I should come to terms with him on any conditions he chose. But I felt
no fear, for I relied on the advance of Stilicho, and was mindful,
O goddess, of those thy leaders who, even in face of death, never
through base love of life made terms at the cost of honour. It was
night; where’er I looked I saw the watchfires of the enemy shining
like stars. The bugle had already summoned the soldiers to the first
watch when glorious Stilicho arrived from the frozen north. But the
enemy held the road between my father-in-law and myself, and the bridge
whose obstructing piers churn turbid Addua to yet fuller foam. What was
Stilicho to do? Halt? My danger forbade the least delay. Break through
the enemy’s line? His force was too small. In hastening to my aid he
had left behind him many auxiliaries and legionary troops. Placed in
this dilemma he

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 108

    ancipiti, longum socias tardumque putavit
    expectasse manus et nostra pericula tendit                         465
    posthabitis pulsare suis mediumque per hostem
    flammatus virtute pia propriaeque salutis
    inmemor et stricto prosternens obvia ferro
    barbara fulmineo secuit tentoria cursu.
      “Nunc mihi Tydiden attollant carmina vatum,                      470
    quod iuncto fidens Ithaco patefacta Dolonis
    indicio dapibusque simul religataque somno
    Thracia sopiti penetraverit agmina Rhesi
    Graiaque rettulerit captos ad castra iugales,
    quorum, si qua fides augentibus omnia Musis,                       475
    impetus excessit Zephyros candorque pruinas.
    ecce virum, taciti nulla qui fraude soporis
    ense palam sibi pandit iter remeatque cruentus
    et Diomedeis tantum praeclarior ausis,
    quantum lux tenebris manifestaque proelia furtis!                  480
    adde quod et ripis steterat munitior hostis
    et cui nec vigilem fas est componere Rhesum:
    Thrax erat, hic Thracum domitor. non tela retardant,
    obice non haesit fluvii. sic ille minacem
    Tyrrhenam labente manum pro ponte repellens                        485
    traiecit clipeo Thybrim, quo texerat urbem,
    Tarquinio mirante Cocles mediisque superbus
    Porsennam respexit aquis. celer Addua nostro
    sulcatus socero: sed, cum transnaret, Etruscis
    ille dabat tergum, Geticis hic pectora bellis.                     490

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 109

thought it long and tedious to wait for reinforcements and, putting
aside his own peril, was eager only to deliver me from mine; inspired
by the courage that is born of love, heedless of his own danger, he
broke through the enemy’s midst and, sword in hand, cutting down all
who sought to bar his passage, he passed like lightning through the
barbarians’ camp.

“Now let poets’ songs praise me the son of Tydeus because, relying on
Odysseus’ help when the way was opened by Dolon’s wiles and all was
sunk in feasting and slumber, he broke into the Thracian camp of Rhesus
and brought back to the Greek lines his captured steeds, which--if we
may trust the too generous Muses--surpassed the winds in speed, the
snows in whiteness. Here was a man who, with no treachery ’mid silent
slumber, clave a path for himself with his sword in the open light of
day and arrived within our lines covered with blood, thus surpassing
the brave deeds of Diomede by as much as day surpasses night and open
battle ambush. Alaric’s position, moreover, on the river bank was a
stronger one, and he himself a warrior with whom Rhesus, even when
awake, could not be compared. Rhesus was king, Alaric the conqueror,
of Thrace. Neither weapons nor the river’s bar could stop Stilicho. So
Horatius, standing on the falling bridge, drave back the threatening
hosts of Etruria and then swam the Tiber, still carrying the shield
wherewith to the amazement of Tarquin he had defended Rome, and from
mid stream looked back with scornful gaze upon Porsenna. ’Twas the
swift Addua my father breasted; but, as he swam the flood, Horatius
turned his back upon the Etruscans, Stilicho faced the barbarian foe.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 110

      “Exere nunc doctos tantae certamina laudis,
    Roma, choros et, quanta tuis facundia pollet
    ingeniis, nostrum digno sonet ore parentem.”
      Dixit et antiquae muros egressa Ravennae
    signa movet; iamque ora Padi portusque relinquit                   495
    flumineos, certis ubi legibus advena Nereus
    aestuat et pronas puppes nunc amne secundo,
    nunc redeunte vehit nudataque litora fluctu
    deserit, Oceani lunaribus aemula damnis.
    laetior hinc Fano recipit Fortuna vetusto,                         500
    despiciturque vagus praerupta valle Metaurus,
    qua mons arte patens vivo se perforat arcu
    admisitque viam sectae per viscera rupis,
    exuperans delubra Iovis saxoque minantes
    Appenninigenis cultas pastoribus aras.                             505
    quin et Clitumni sacras victoribus undas,
    candida quae Latiis praebent armenta triumphis,
    visere cura fuit; nec te miracula fontis
    praetereunt, tacito passu quem si quis adiret,
    lentus erat; si voce gradum maiore citasset,                       510
    commixtis fervebat aquis; cumque omnibus una
    sit natura vadis, similes ut corporis undas
    ostendant, haec sola novam iactantia sortem
    humanos properant imitari flumina mores.
    celsa dehinc patulum prospectans Narnia campum                     515
    regali calcatur equo, rarique coloris
    non procul amnis abest, urbi qui nominis auctor:
    ilice sub densa silvis artatus opacis

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 111

“Now, O Rome, lead forth the chorus that shall hymn a contest of such
high renown and let thy best genius with all its eloquence voice the
well-merited praises of my foster parent.”

So spake he and, issuing from the walls of old Ravenna, advanced his
standards. He crossed the mouths of the Po and left behind him that
river harbour[38] where, in fixed succession, in flows the foaming
main and bears up the vessels that ride there at anchor on forward
and backward flowing stream, and again deserts the waveless shore,
like moon-led tides upon the marge of Ocean. Next he comes to the
old city of Fortune’s Temple that bids him glad welcome and from its
height looks down upon Metaurus threading its rocky valley where
an arch, tunnelled through the living rock, affords a path through
the mountain’s very heart, rising above the temple of Jove and the
dizzy altars set up by the shepherds of the Apennines. ’Twas thy
good pleasure, too, to visit Clitumnus’ wave,[39] beloved of them
that triumph, for thence do victors get them white-coated animals
for sacrifice at Rome. Thou markest well also the stream’s strange
property, flowing gently on when one approaches with silent step, but
swirling and eddying should one hasten with louder utterance; and while
it is the common nature of water to mirror the exact image of the body
it alone boasts the strange power that it mimics not human form but
human character. Next thy royal charger treads the streets of Narnia,
looking out from its eminence upon the plain below: not far therefrom
flows the strange-coloured stream which gives the town its name, its
sulphurous waters

    [38] Classis Portus, a harbour formed by means of the Fossa
    Augusta which led the southern arm of the Po to Ravenna. It was in
    existence in 38 B.C. (App. _B.C._ v. 78, 80) and held 250 ships
    (Jordanes, _Get._ 150; _cf._ Pliny, _H.N._ iii. 119; Sid. Apol.
    _Epp._ i. 5. 5).

    [39] For a description of the Clitumnus see Pliny, _Epp._ viii. 8.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 112

    inter utrumque iugum tortis anfractibus albet.
    inde salutato libatis Thybride lymphis                             520
    excipiunt arcus operosaque semita vastis
    molibus et quidquid tantae praemittitur urbi.

    Ac velut officiis trepidantibus ora puellae
    spe propiore tori mater sollertior ornat
    adveniente proco vestesque et cingula comit                        525
    saepe manu viridique angustat iaspide pectus
    substringitque comam gemmis et colla monili
    circuit et bacis onerat candentibus aures:
    sic oculis placitura tuis insignior auctis
    collibus et nota maior se Roma videndam                            530
    obtulit. addebant pulchrum nova moenia vultum
    audito perfecta recens rumore Getarum,
    profecitque opifex decori timor, et vice mira,
    quam pax intulerat, bello discussa senectus
    erexit subitas turres cunctosque coëgit                            535
    septem continuo colles iuvenescere muro.
    ipse favens votis solitoque decentior aër,
    quamvis adsiduo noctem foedaverat imbre,
    principis et solis radiis detersa removit
    nubila; namque ideo pluviis turbaverat omnes                       540
    ante dies lunamque rudem madefecerat Auster,
    ut tibi servatum scirent convexa serenum.

    Omne Palatino quod pons a colle recedit
    Mulvius et quantum licuit consurgere tectis,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 113

flowing in tortuous course between opposed mountains through dense
forests of holm-oak. Then when in greeting to Father Tiber thou hast
poured a libation of his waters thou art welcomed by Rome’s arches and
all the magnificent buildings which line the roads of that noble city’s
suburbs.

And as a careful mother at the approach of her daughter’s lover does
all that trembling hand can do to enhance the charms that are to win
a husband, oft readjusts dress and girdle, confines her breast with
bands of green jasper, gathers up her hair with jewels, sets a necklace
about her neck, and hangs glistening pearls from her ears, so Rome,
in order to be pleasing in thy sight, offers herself to thy admiring
gaze more glorious and with hills made higher and herself greater than
thou hadst known her. Still fairer than of old she seemed by reason
of those new walls that the rumour of the Getae’s approach had just
caused to be built; fear was the architect of that beauteous work and,
by a strange freak of fortune, war put an end to the decay that peace
had brought. For fear it was that caused the sudden upspringing of all
those towers and renewed the youth of Rome’s seven hills by enclosing
them all within one long wall. Even the weather listened favourably
to our prayers and was finer than its wont, although continuous rain
had spoiled the preceding night; but the clouds melted away before the
glory of the sun and the emperor. All the days before had the south
wind troubled with rain and dimmed the moon’s young disc that heaven
might know it was for thee that the sunshine waited.

One huge crowd filled all the slope between the Palatine hill and the
Mulvian bridge and as far up

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 114

    una replet turbae facies: undare videres                           545
    ima viris, altas effulgere matribus aedes.
    exultant iuvenes aequaevi principis annis;
    temnunt prisca senes et in hunc sibi prospera fati
    gratantur durasse diem moderataque laudant
    tempora, quod clemens aditu, quod pectore solus                    550
    Romanos vetuit currum praecedere patres:
    cum tamen Eucherius, cui regius undique sanguis,
    atque Augusta soror fratri praeberet ovanti
    militis obsequium; sic illum dura parentis
    instituit pietas in se vel pignora parci                           555
    quique neget nato, procerum quod praestat honori.
    haec sibi curva[40] senum maturaque comprobat aetas
    idque inter veteris speciem praesentis et aulae
    iudicat: hunc civem, dominos venisse priores.
      Conspicuas tum flore genas, diademate crinem                     560
    membraque gemmato trabeae viridantia cinctu
    et fortes umeros et certatura Lyaeo
    inter Erythraeas surgentia colla smaragdos
    mirari sine fine nurus; ignaraque virgo,
    cui simplex calet ore pudor, per singula cernens                   565
    nutricem consultat anum: quid fixa draconum
    ora velint? ventis fluitent an vera minentur
    sibila suspensum rapturi faucibus hostem?
    ut chalybe indutos equites et in aere latentes
    vidit cornipedes: “quanam de gente” rogabat                        570
    “ferrati venere viri? quae terra metallo
    nascentes informat equos? num Lemnius auctor

    [40] _curva_ Birt; codd. _cura_.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 115

as it was possible to go on the house roofs; the ground seethed with
men, the lofty buildings were aglow with women. Those who are young
rejoice in an emperor of their own age, the old cease to belaud the
past and count their destiny happy that they have lived to see such
a day, blessing the kindly times when a prince so easy of access, so
singular in courtesy, forbade the senators of Rome to march before
his chariot, even though Eucherius, in whose veins ran regal blood on
father’s and on mother’s side, and his own sister did honour to his
triumph like simple soldiers. Such has been the teaching of that stern
but loving parent who showed no more favour to his children than to
himself, and refused a son honours he granted to nobles. Bent age and
upstanding youth alike are loud in his praises and, comparing the new
with the ancient rule, recognize in Honorius a true citizen, in his
predecessors tyrants.

The women of Rome never tire of gazing at those blooming cheeks, those
crowned locks, those limbs clothed in the consul’s jasper-studded
robes, those mighty shoulders, and that neck, beauteous as Bacchus’
own, with its necklace of Red Sea emeralds. Many an innocent maid,
while simple modesty blushes in her cheek, would bend her gaze o’er
all and inquire of her aged nurse the meaning of the dragons on the
colours. “Do they,” she would ask, “but wave in the air or is theirs a
veritable hiss, uttered as they are about to seize an enemy in their
jaws?” When she sees the mail-clad knights and brazen-armoured horses
she would fain know whence that iron race of men is sprung and what
land it is gives birth to steeds of bronze. “Has the god of Lemnos,”

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 116

    indidit hinnitum ferro simulacraque belli
    viva dedit?” gaudet metuens et pollice monstrat.
    quod picturatas galeae Iunonia cristas                             575
    ornet avis vel quod rigidos vibrata per armos
    rubra sub aurato crispentur serica dorso.
      Tunc tibi magnorum mercem Fortuna laborum
    persolvit, Stilicho, curru cum vectus eodem
    urbe triumphantem generum florente iuventa                         580
    conspiceres illumque diem sub corde referres,
    quo tibi confusa dubiis formidine rebus
    infantem genitor moriens commisit alendum.
    virtutes variae fructus sensere receptos;
    depositum servasse, fides; constantia, parvum                      585
    praefecisse orbi; pietas, fovisse propinquum.
    hic est ille puer, qui nunc ad rostra Quirites
    evocat et solio fultus genitoris eburno
    gestarum patribus causas ex ordine rerum
    eventusque refert veterumque exempla secutus                       590
    digerit imperii sub iudice facta senatu.
    nil cumulat verbis quae nil fiducia celat;
    fucati sermonis opem mens conscia laudis
    abnuit. agnoscunt proceres; habituque Gabino
    principis et ducibus circumstipata togatis                         595
    iure paludatae iam curia militat aulae.
    adfuit ipsa suis ales Victoria templis
    Romanae tutela togae: quae divite penna
    patricii reverenda fovet sacraria coetus

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 117

she would ask, “bestowed on metal the power to neigh, and forged living
statues for the fight?” Joy and fear fill her mind; she points with her
finger how Juno’s bird decks the gay crests upon their helmets, or how,
beneath the golden armour on their horses’ backs, the red silk waves
and ripples over the strong shoulders.

Then it was, Stilicho, that Fortune repaid thee for the labour of
so many years when, mounted in the same chariot, thou sawest thy
son-in-law in his prime pass in triumph through the streets of Rome,
and didst recall that day when in troubled terror mid uncertain fortune
the dying father entrusted his son to thy care. Now thy many virtues
have found their meet reward: loyalty that has kept safe that which was
confided to it, singleness of purpose that made a boy the master of
the world, affection that has bestowed such loving care on an adopted
son. This is the boy who to-day summons Rome’s citizens to the place
of meeting and from his father’s ivory throne tells to the fathers the
causes and the issues of his acts, and, following ancient precedent,
directs the deeds of empire at the judgement-seat of the Senate. He
piles up no words, for confidence has nothing to conceal; his mind,
conscious of true worth, refuses the aid of artificial speech. The
senators learn to know him; their chief wears the Gabine[41] garb, and
thronged with generals in the rôle of peace the Senate-house prepares
for service under the auspices of the warlike court. Winged victory
herself, Rome’s faithful guardian, was in her temple;[42] her golden
pinions stretched in protection over the holy sanctuary where the
fathers meet together, and she herself, a tireless

    [41] See note on vii. 3.

    [42] A reference to the statue of Victory in the Senate House.
    Ambrose had persuaded Gratian to turn it out (A.D. 384) but
    Honorius had had it replaced (_cf._ xxiii. 19 and Paulinus, _Vita
    S. Ambr._ viii. § 26).

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 118

    castrorumque eadem comes indefessa tuorum                          600
    nunc tandem fruitur votis atque omne futurum
    te Romae seseque tibi promittit in aevum.
      Hinc te iam patriis laribus via nomine vero
    sacra refert. flagrat studiis concordia vulgi,
    quam non inlecebris dispersi colligis auri;                        605
    nec tibi venales captant aeraria plausus
    corruptura fidem: meritis offertur inemptus
    pura mente favor. nam munere carior omni
    obstringit sua quemque salus. procul ambitus erret!
    non quaerit pretium, vitam qui debet amori.                        610
      O quantum populo secreti numinis addit
    imperii praesens genius! quantamque rependit
    maiestas alterna vicem, cum regia circi
    conexum gradibus veneratur purpura vulgus,
    adsensuque cavae sublatus in aethera vallis                        615
    plebis adoratae reboat fragor, unaque totis
    intonat Augustum septenis arcibus Echo!
    nec solis hic cursus equis: adsueta quadrigis
    cingunt arva trabes, subitaeque adspectus harenae
    diffundit Libycos aliena valle cruores.                            620
    haec et belligeros exercuit area lusus,
    armatos haec saepe choros, certaque vagandi
    textas lege fugas inconfusosque recursus
    et pulchras errorum artes iucundaque Martis
    cernimus. insonuit cum verbere signa magister,                     625

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 119

attendant on thine armies, now at last has had her wish granted and is
able to promise that for all time to come thou shalt be Rome’s guardian
and she thine.

Hence the Sacred Way (now truly named) brings thee back to thy home.
Eagerly breaks out the world’s one-hearted welcome, that thou dost
not woo with lure of scattered gold; nor for thee does the treasury,
seeking to corrupt good faith, court venal applause; to worth
unpurchased love is offered by a pure heart. For life that is dearer
than any gift makes all thy debtors. Away with wooing of applause! He
can ask no payment who owes his life to love.

Oh what mysterious power over the people does the Empire’s
guardian-genius bring! What majesty bows to majesty as the prince, clad
in imperial scarlet, returns the salutations of the people that crowd
the tiers of the Circus! The shouts of the adoring populace rising from
that immense circle thunder to the sky, while the echoes of Rome’s
seven hills repeat as with one voice the name of Honorius. Nor does the
Circus display only horse-races; its floor, whereon chariots were wont
to drive, is surrounded by a palisade, and in this new amphitheatre, so
far, so different, from their native valleys, Libyan lions shed their
blood. This is the scene, too, of a military display; here we often
see armed bands advancing and retiring in mazèd movements that are
nevertheless executed according to a fixed plan; we watch them wheel
in perfect order, extend with disciplined precision, affording us the
pleasing spectacle of mimic warfare. The leader cracks his whip and a
thousand bodies execute in unison

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 120

    mutatos edunt pariter tot pectora motus
    in latus adlisis clipeis aut rursus in altum
    vibratis; grave parma sonat, mucronis acutum
    murmur, et umbonum pulsu modulante resultans
    ferreus alterno concentus clauditur ense.                          630
    una omnis summissa phalanx tantaeque salutant
    te, princeps, galeae. partitis inde catervis
    in varios docto discurritur ordine gyros,
    quos neque semiviri Gortynia tecta iuvenci
    flumina nec crebro vincant Maeandria flexu.                        635
    discreto revoluta gradu torquentur in orbes
    agmina, perpetuisque inmoto cardine claustris
    Ianus bella premens laeta sub imagine pugnae
    armorum innocuos paci largitur honores.
      Iamque novum fastis aperit felicibus annum                       640
    ore coronatus gemino; iam Thybris in uno
    et Bruti cernit trabeas et sceptra Quirini.
    consule laetatur post plurima saecula viso
    Pallanteus apex; agnoscunt rostra curules
    auditas quondam proavis, desuetaque cingit                         645
    regius auratis fora fascibus Ulpia lictor,
    et sextas Getica praevelans fronde secures
    colla triumphati proculcat Honorius Histri.
    exeat in populos cunctis inlustrior annus,
    natus fonte suo, quem non aliena per arva                          650
    induit hospes honos, cuius cunabula fovit
    curia, quem primi tandem videre Quirites,
    quem domitis auspex peperit Victoria bellis!

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 121

their new movements; now they clap their bucklers to their sides,
now they brandish them above their heads; deeply sound the clashing
shields, sharply ring the engaging swords, and, to the rhythm of beaten
targes, the echoing song of steel is punctuated by the interclash of
weapons. Suddenly the whole phalanx falls on its knees before thee and
a thousand helmets bow down in reverence. Then the companies separate,
wheeling and counter-wheeling with ordered skill, following a course
more tortuous than the corridors of the Minotaur’s Cretan palace or the
reaches of Meander’s wandering stream. Then wheeling apart they form
with circular masses, and Janus,[43] emprisoning war behind his ever
unopening doors, after a happy mimicry of battle bestows on peace the
innocent rewards of combat.

And now, his double head crowned with laurel, Janus opens the new year
with auspicious calendar; now Tiber sees united in Honorius Brutus’
consular robe and Romulus’ kingly sceptre. The Palatine hill rejoices
after many generations again to look upon a consul; the rostra learn
to know the curule chair famed of old among our forefathers, and royal
lictors, a long unwonted sight, encircle with their golden fasces the
Forum of Trajan; while Honorius, wreathing with Getic laurels the axes
borne for the sixth time before him, places a conqueror’s foot upon
the neck of subdued Danube. Let this year springing from its true
source go forth among the nations more glorious than any--a year the
consul inaugurated, not a stranger in a strange land, whose cradle the
Senate-house guarded, that Roman citizens first beheld, that Victory,
all wars o’ercome, auspiciously

    [43] Mentioned, no doubt, as symbolical of the New Year.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 122

    hunc et privati titulis famulantibus anni
    et, quos armipotens genitor retroque priores                       655
    diversis gessere locis, ceu numen adorent;
    hunc et quinque tui vel quos habiturus in urbe
    post alios, Auguste, colant. licet unus in omnes
    consul eas, magno sextus tamen iste superbit
    nomine: praeteritis melior, venientibus auctor.                    660

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 123

brought to birth. Years in which mere commoners held the consulship,
and ye years when Theodosius and his predecessors graced that office
in Rome or elsewhere, count your honours as nought and worship this
present year. Ay, you five previous consulships of Honorius, even you
that our emperor shall hold in Rome in the days to come, give place to
this one. Wert thou, Honorius, to be consul every year, yet is this thy
sixth to be magnified above all thy consulships, excelling all that are
past and model of all that are to come.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 124




DE BELLO GOTHICO

PRAEFATIO

(XXV.)


    Post resides annos longo velut excita somno
      Romanis fruitur nostra Thalia choris.
    optatos renovant eadem mihi culmina coetus,
      personat et noto Pythia vate domus:
    consulis hic fasces cecini Libyamque receptam,                       5
      hic mihi prostratis bella canenda Getis.

    Sed prior effigiem tribuit successus aënam,
      oraque patricius nostra dicavit honos;
    adnuit his princeps titulum poscente senatu;
      respice iudicium quam grave, Musa, subis!                         10
    ingenio minuit merces properata favorem:
      carminibus veniam praemia tanta negant;
    et magis intento studium censore laborat,
      quod legimur medio conspicimurque foro.

    Materies tamen ipsa iuvat solitumque timorem                        15
      dicturo magna sedula parte levat.
    nam mihi conciliat gratas impensius aures
      vel meritum belli vel Stilichonis amor.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 125




THE GOTHIC WAR

PREFACE

(XXV.)


After years of sloth my Muse, as if startled from long slumber,
rejoices to sing a Roman song to Roman ears. Once more the same halls
bring the gathering I longed for, and Apollo’s temple echoes to the
voice of a familiar bard. ’Twas here I sang of the consular fasces
and of the winning back of Libya and here must I sing of the war that
overthrew the Getae.

But my former success won for me a brazen statue[44] and the Fathers
set up my likeness in my honour; at the Senate’s prayer the Emperor
allowed the claim--bethink thee, Muse, how strict a judgement thou
dost face! Wit wins less favour when too soon rewarded, and so great a
gift refuses indulgence for my song. Now that my name is read and my
features are known in the forum my Muse labours for a sterner critic
than before.

Yet my theme itself brings cheer and, as I begin to speak, eagerly
lightens much of my accustomed fear. A gracious and more devoted
hearing is secured for me, be it by the war’s deserving or be it by
Stilicho’s love.

    [44] For Claudian’s statue see Introduction, p. xii. For a similar
    honour conceded to Sidonius _cf._ Sid. Apol. _Epp._ ix. 16. 3;
    _Carm._ viii. 8.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 126


(XXVI.)

    Intacti cum claustra freti, coëuntibus aequor
    armatum scopulis, audax inrumperet Argo
    Aeetam Colchosque petens, propiore periclo
    omnibus attonitis, solus post numina Tiphys
    incolumem tenui damno servasse carinam                               5
    fertur et ancipitem montis vitasse ruinam
    deceptoque vagae concursu rupis in altum
    victricem duxisse ratem; stupuere superbae
    arte viri domitae Symplegades et nova passae
    iura soli cunctis faciles iam puppibus haerent,                     10
    ut vinci didicere semel. quodsi ardua Tiphyn
    navis ob innocuae meritum sic gloria vexit,
    quae tibi pro tanti pulso discrimine regni
    sufficient laudes, Stilicho? licet omnia vates
    in maius celebrata ferant ipsamque secandis                         15
    Argois trabibus iactent sudasse Minervam
    nec nemoris muti iunxisse carentia sensu
    robora, sed caeso Tomari Iovis augure luco
    arbore praesaga tabulas animasse loquaces.
    plurima sed quamvis variis miracula monstris                        20
    ingeminent, teneras victuri carmine mentes,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 127


(XXVI.)

When the intrepid Argo, passing between the clashing rocks that
guarded its entrance, burst through the portals of the unfurrowed sea
making for Colchis where Aeëtes ruled, it is said that, when all were
panic-stricken by the nearing danger, Tiphys alone--with heaven’s
help--kept safe the almost uninjured bark. ’Twas thanks to him that
the Argo escaped the cliffs threatening ruin and came out victorious
into the open sea, cunningly eluding the meeting shock of the floating
rocks. Amazed were the proud Symplegades thus subdued by the hero’s
skill, and, submitting to the novel laws of the fixed earth, offer
unmoved an easy passage to all ships since once they have learned
defeat. But if the merit of saving a single vessel from ruin won, and
rightly won, for Tiphys such meed of honour, what praises shall suffice
for thee, Stilicho, who hast freed so great an empire from destruction?
Poets may exaggerate the story; they may boast that Minerva toiled with
her own hands to hew the Argo’s beams, and that she fitted together no
senseless timber from a dumb forest, but felled the augural grove of
Tomarian[45] Jove and with those prophetic trees quickened its planks
to speech. But though they burden their recital with the story of
countless prodigies to captivate the mind of the unlettered

    [45] A reference to the “talking oaks” of Dodona, Tomarus (or Tmarus)
    being a mountain in Epirus near Dodona.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 128

    Harpyiasque truces insopitisque refusum
    tractibus aurati custodem velleris anguem
    et iuga taurorum rapidis ambusta favillis
    et virides galeis sulcos fetasque novales                           25
    Martis et in segetem crescentis semina belli:
    nil veris aequale dabunt. prohibere rapaces
    scilicet Harpyias unaque excludere mensa
    nobilior titulus, quam tot potuisse paratas
    in Latii praedam Geticas avertere fauces?                           30
    anne ego terrigenas potius mirabor in ipsis
    procubuisse satis, vitae quibus attulit idem
    principium finemque dies, quam caesa Getarum
    agmina, quos tantis aluit Bellona tropaeis
    totaque sub galeis Mavortia canuit aetas?                           35
      Per te namque unum mediis exuta tenebris
    imperio sua forma redit, claustrisque solutae
    tristibus exangues audent procedere leges.
    iamque potestates priscus discriminat ordo
    iustitiae, quas ante pares effecerat una                            40
    nube timor. tua nos urgenti dextera leto
    eripuit, tectisque suis redduntur et agris
    damnati fato populi, virtute renati.
    iam non in pecorum morem formidine clausi
    prospicimus saevos campis ardentibus ignes                          45
    alta nec incertis metimur flumina votis
    excidio latura moram nec poscimus amnes

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 129

young, though they tell of fierce Harpies, of the dragon whose
unsleeping length lay curled in protecting folds about the golden
fleece, of yoked bulls afire with flickering flames, of a springing
crop of helmets, a field from out whose furrows grew a Martian race,
of seeds of war whose increase yielded a harvest, too, of war, yet do
these fictions fall short of the truth. Is it a nobler title to fame to
have driven off the greedy Harpies and banished them from the table of
a single man than to have had the strength to beat back those countless
Getic maws that thirsted for the spoil of Latium? Am I to look with
more admiration upon those earth-born warriors struck down in the very
furrows from which they sprang, born and dying in a single day, than
upon the slaughtered ranks of Getae whom the goddess of war reared on
so many spoils and whose martial life came to grey hairs, passed ever
beneath helmets?

Thou and thou alone, Stilicho, hast dispersed the darkness that
enshrouded our empire and hast restored its glory; thanks to thee
civilization, all but vanished, has been freed from the gloomy prison
and can again advance. The old order of justice now makes distinction
between magistracies which fear had made equal in a common gloom. Thy
right hand has snatched us from impending death and restored to their
homes and lands peoples whom fate sentenced and thy valour saved. No
longer, herded together like sheep by reason of our fears, do we watch
from the ramparts our fields ablaze with the enemy’s fire, no longer
measure the depth of rivers which we feebly hope will retard our
destruction nor ask the streams and flying clouds to

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 130

    undosam servare fidem nubesque fugaces
    aut coniuratum querimur splendere serenum.
      Ipsa quoque internis furiis exercita plebis                       50
    securas iam Roma leva tranquillior arces;
    surge, precor, veneranda parens, et certa secundis
    fide deis, humilemque metum depone senectae.
    urbs aequaeva polo, tum demum ferrea sumet
    ius in te Lachesis, cum sic mutaverit axem                          55
    foederibus natura novis, ut flumine verso
    inriget Aegyptum Tanais, Maeotida Nilus,
    Eurus ab occasu, Zephyrus se promat ab Indis
    Caucasiisque iugis calido nigrantibus Austro
    Gaetulas Aquilo glacie constringat harenas.                         60
      Fatales hucusque manus, crebrisque notatae
    prodigiis abiere minae. nec sidera pacem
    semper habent, ipsumque Iovem turbante Typhoeo,
    si fas est, tremuisse ferunt, cum brachia centum
    montibus armaret totidem spiramque retorquens                       65
    lamberet attonitas erectis anguibus Arctos.
    quid mirum, si regna labor mortalia vexat,
    cum gemini fratres, genuit quos asper Aloeus,
    Martem subdiderint vinclis et in astra negatas
    temptarint munire vias steteritque revulsis                         70
    paene tribus scopulis caelesti machina bello?
    sed caret eventu nimius furor; improba numquam
    spes laetata diu, nec pervenere iuventae
    robur Aloidae, dum vellere Pelion Otus
    nititur, occubuit Phoebo, moriensque Ephialtes                      75
    in latus obliquam proiecit languidus Ossam.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 131

keep the promise of their waters or complain that the sunshine
conspires against us with its splendour.

Thou, too, Rome, so long vexed with internal discord, lift up thy hills
at last more peacefully in safety. Arise, honoured mother, be sure that
God’s favour is with thee; banish the lowly timorousness of age. City
that art coëval with the world, inexorable Lachesis shall not exercise
against thee her rights of destruction until Nature has so changed the
immutable laws of the universe that Tanais turn his course and water
Egypt, Nile flow into Lake Maeotis, Eurus blow from the west, Zephyr
from India, and the south wind rage in tempest o’er the summit of
Caucasus, while that of the north binds the deserts of Africa with its
frost.

Thus far came the fatal hordes; now their threats, whereof so many
omens warned us, have vanished away. Heaven’s self was not always at
peace: they tell how even Jove trembled (if one may dare to say so)
when Typhoeus attacked him, arming his hundred hands with a hundred
mountains and touching the astonished constellation of the Bear with
his towering snaky coils. What wonder if trouble harasses mortal realms
when cruel Aloeus’ two sons cast Mars in chains and attempted to build
that forbidden road to the stars so that the universe almost ceased to
move, what time the three rocks[46] were uprooted in the war of heaven?
But their blind fury was of no effect; wicked hopes never exult for
long. Aloeus’ children never reached man’s estate; Otus, attempting to
uproot Pelion, was stricken down by Phoebus, and Ephialtes as he died
wearily let Ossa fall athwart his side.

    [46] _i.e._ the mountains Pelion, Ossa and Olympus.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 132

      Adspice, Roma, tuum iam vertice celsior hostem,
    adspice quam rarum referens inglorius agmen
    Italia detrusus eat quantumque priori
    dissimilis, qui cuncta sibi cessura ruenti                          80
    pollicitus patrii numen iuraverat Histri
    non nisi calcatis loricam ponere rostris.
    o rerum fatique vices! qui foeda parabat
    Romanas ad stupra nurus, sua pignora vidit
    coniugibus permixta trahi; qui mente profundas                      85
    hauserat urbis opes, ultro victoribus ipse
    praeda fuit; nostri quondam qui militis auro
    adgressus temptare fidem, desertus ab omni
    gente sua manibusque redit truncatus et armis.
      Hoc quoque, quod veniam leti valuere mereri,                      90
    si positis pendas odiis, ignoscere pulchrum
    iam misero poenaeque genus vidisse precantem.
    quae vindicta prior quam cum formido superbos
    flectit et adsuetum spoliis adfligit egestas?
    sed magis ex aliis fluxit dementia causis,                          95
    consulitur dum, Roma, tibi. tua cura coëgit
    inclusis aperire fugam, ne peior in arto
    saeviret rabies venturae conscia mortis;
    nec tanti nomen stirpemque abolere Getarum,
    ut propius peterere, fuit. procul arceat altus                     100
    Iuppiter, ut delubra Numae sedesque Quirini
    barbaries oculis saltem temerare profanis
    possit et arcanum tanti deprendere regni.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 133

Lift up thy head, Rome, and behold thine enemy; see how, leading
back in dishonour a shattered host, he is cast forth from Italy. How
different is he from what he was when he sware that everything should
yield to his onset and took an oath by Danube whom he and his fathers
worshipped that he would never unbuckle his breastplate until he had
marched in triumph through the Forum. How strange are the changes Fate
brings about! He who destined the women of Rome as victims of his
lust has seen his own wives and children led away captive; he who in
imagination had drained the countless wealth of our city became himself
his victor’s easy prey; he who once sought to corrupt the loyalty of
our troops has been deserted by his own people and has returned to his
country beggared of men and arms.

Then too if, laying hatred aside, thou shouldest weigh the cause that
won them pardon from their doom, surely to spare a fallen foe is itself
a triumph and to see him on his knees punishment enough. What vengeance
so satisfying as when terror makes pride stoop, and want bows down him
who before bore spoils? But our clemency was in part due to another
cause, for we thought of thee, O Rome. Concern for thee constrained us
to offer a way of escape to the beleaguered foe lest, with the fear
of death before their eyes, their rage should grow the more terrible
for being confined. An enemy before thy very walls would have been too
heavy a price to pay for the destruction of the race and name of the
Getae. May Jove from on high forbid that the barbarian should outrage
even with a glance Numa’s shrine or Romulus’ temple, or discover aught
of the secrets of our empire.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 134

      Quamquam, si veterum certamina rite recordor,
    tunc etiam, pulchra cum libertate vigerent                         105
    et proprio late florerent milite patres,
    semper ab his famae petiere insignia bellis,
    quae diversa procul tuto trans aequora vires
    exercere dabant: currus regumque catenae
    inter abundantis fati ludibria ductae.                             110
    at vero Italiam quotiens circumstetit atrox
    tempestas ipsumque caput laesura pependit,
    non illis vani ratio ventosa furoris,
    sed graviter spectata salus ductorque placebat,
    non qui praecipiti traheret semel omnia casu,                      115
    sed qui maturo vel laeta vel aspera rerum
    consilio momenta regens, nec tristibus impar
    nec pro successu nimius, spatiumque morandi
    vincendique modum mutatis nosset habenis.
    cautius ingentes morbos et proxima cordi                           120
    ulcera Paeoniae tractat sollertia curae
    parcendoque secat, ferro ne largius acto
    inrevocandus eat sectis vitalibus error.
      Sublimi certe Curium canit ore vetustas,
    Aeaciden Italo pepulit qui litore Pyrrhum,                         125
    nec magis insignis Pauli Mariique triumphus,
    qui captos niveis reges egere quadrigis;
    plus fuga laudatur Pyrrhi quam vincla Iugurthae;
    et, quamvis gemina fessum iam clade fugavit,
    post Decii lituos et nulli pervia culpae                           130
    pectora Fabricii, donis invicta vel armis,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 135

And yet--if duly I recall ancient conflicts--then also when, fair
liberty lending vigour, the senate was everywhere successful with
native troops, they sought trophies from such wars as were waged far
away across the sea where our soldiers could exercise their courage
without danger to their homes; chariots and fettered kings were
accounted but the shows that overflowing fortune gave. But whenever
a dread storm burst upon Italy or hung threateningly over her head
their thought was not how to give vent to profitless fury but how
best at such a crisis to secure the safety of the state. The leader
of their choice was not he who hazarded all on one rash throw but one
who gave careful thought to each eventuality, were it fortunate or the
reverse, one who could bear adversity with fortitude and success with
moderation, and by slackening or tightening the reins of government
knew how to make use of victory and to temporize after a setback. The
physician’s skill deals more carefully with grave diseases and ulcers
that are near the heart: here he is more sparing of the knife for fear
lest the blade, driven too deep, should slip and sever beyond healing
some vital organ.

Proud assuredly is the strain in which bards of old sing of Curius
who drove Pyrrhus, son of Aeacus, from the shores of Italy;[47] not
more resplendent were the triumphs of Paulus and of Marius who dragged
captive kings behind their white-horsed chariots. The expulsion of
Pyrrhus is more praised than the capture of Jugurtha; and although
Curius drove out a prince whose spirit had already been broken by two
reverses, at the hands of Decius and of the blameless Fabricius whom
neither bribes

    [47] After his defeat by Curius Dentatus near Beneventum in 277
    B.C. Pyrrhus, king of Epirus, was forced to evacuate Italy.
    Claudian, in this section, is at pains tactfully to justify
    Stilicho’s _expulsion_ of Alaric from Italy, as opposed to his
    _capture_.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 136

    plena datur Curio pulsi victoria Pyrrhi.
    quanto maius opus solo Stilichone peractum
    cernimus! his validam gentem, quam dura nivosis
    educat Ursa plagis, non Chaonas atque Molossos,                    135
    quos Epirus alit, nec Dodonaea subegit
    agmina fatidicam frustra iactantia quercum.
      Primus fulmineum lento luctamine Poenum
    compressit Fabius, campo post ausus aperto
    Marcellus vinci docuit, sed tertia virtus                          140
    Scipiadae Latiis tandem deterruit oris.
    unus in hoc Stilicho diversis artibus hoste
    tris potuit complere duces fregitque furentem
    cunctando vicitque manu victumque relegat.
      Atque haec tanta brevi. miscentem incendia Pyrrhum
    sustinuit toto maerens Oenotria lustro,                            146
    et prope ter senas Itali per graminis herbas
    Massylus Poeno sonipes vastante cucurrit
    Hannibalemque senem vix ad sua reppulit arva
    vindex sera patrum post bellum nata iuventus.                      150
    his celer effecit, bruma ne longior una
    esset hiems rerum, primis sed mensibus aestas
    temperiem caelo pariter patriaeque[48] referret.
      Sed quid ego Hannibalem contra Pyrrhumque tot annis
    certatum memorem, vilis cum Spartacus omne                         155
    per latus Italiae ferro bacchatus et igni
    consulibusque palam totiens congressus inertes
    exuerit castris dominos et strage pudenda

    [48] codd. _belloque_; Birt suggests _regnoque_; Postgate _patriaeque_.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 137

nor arms could overcome, yet the whole glory of that expulsion is given
to him. But how much greater the task we see fulfilled by Stilicho
alone! He has conquered not Chaones or Molossi, Epirot tribes, nor
yet the armies of Dodona that idly boast their prophetic grove, but a
mighty people whose home lies in those snowy regions beneath the icy
constellation of the Bear.

Fabius was the first to stay by his slow struggles Hannibal’s lightning
rush; then Marcellus, meeting him in the open field, taught him defeat,
but it was the valour of Scipio that drove him from the shores of
Italy. In the case of our latest foe Stilicho succeeded in combining in
himself the diverse skill of all these three; he broke their frenzy by
delaying, vanquished them in battle and drove the vanquished host from
Italy.

And all this in so short a time. Full five years did Italy mourn
beneath the scattered fires of Pyrrhus, for well-nigh eighteen years
did the African steeds of the Carthaginians tread down and devastate
our harvests, and it was a second generation, born after the outbreak
of the war, that, exacting a tardy vengeance for the first, with
difficulty drove an aged Hannibal back to his own country. Stilicho
acted more quickly: he saw to it that the winter of our distress should
last but one winter[49] but that spring in its earliest months should
bring back fair weather alike to heaven and to fatherland.

Why should I make mention of the wars waged all those weary years
against Hannibal and Pyrrhus when that vile gladiator Spartacus,
ravaging all the countryside with fire and sword, oft engaged the
consuls in open war and, driving out its feeble masters

    [49] The winter of 401-402.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 138

    fuderit imbelles aquilas servilibus armis?
    nos terrorum expers et luxu mollior aetas                          160
    deficimus queruli, si bos abductus aratro,
    si libata seges. non hanc ergastula nobis
    inmisere manum nec coniurantis harenae
    turba fuit; qualem Stilicho deiecerit hostem,
    Thraces et Haemonii poterunt Moesique fateri.                      165
      Frigida ter decies nudatum frondibus Haemum
    tendit hiems vestire gelu totiensque solutis
    ver nivibus viridem monti reparavit amictum,
    ex quo iam patrios gens haec oblita Triones
    atque Histrum transvecta semel vestigia fixit                      170
    Threicio funesta solo. seu fata vocabant
    seu gravis ira deum, seriem meditata ruinis,
    ex illo, quocumque vagos impegit Erinys,
    grandinis aut morbi ritu per devia rerum,
    praecipites per clausa ruunt, nec contigit ullis                   175
    amnibus aut scopulis proprias defendere terras.
    nil Rhodope, nil vastus Athos, nil profuit Hebrus
    Odrysiis; facili contemptum Strymona saltu
    et frustra rapidum damnant Haliacmona Bessi.
    nubibus intactum Macedo miratur Olympum                            180
    more pererratum campi; gemit inrita Tempe
    Thessalus et domitis inrisam cautibus Oeten.
    Sperchiusque et virginibus dilectus Enipeus
    barbaricas lavere comas. non obice Pindi
    servati Dryopes nec nubifer Actia texit                            185
    litora Leucates; ipsae, quae durius olim
    restiterant Medis, primo conamine ruptae

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                              Page 139

from the Roman camp, put to rout the unwarlike eagles defeated with
shameful carnage by a band of slaves? We, unused to war’s alarms,
an age enervated with luxury, grumble and give up in despair if a
ploughing ox is looted or our harvest so much as touched. It was no
slaves’ prison that loosed on us the Getic hordes; these were not a
crowd of rebellious gladiators. Thrace, Haemus and Moesia can tell you
what manner of foe Stilicho expelled. Thrice ten times has chill winter
cast her snowy mantle over leafless Haemus; as oft has spring, when
those snows were melted, renewed the mountain’s verdant cloak since the
Getic race, forgetful of its native stars and once having crossed the
Danube, set destructive foot on Thracian soil. Whether fate led them
or the heavy anger of the gods planning disaster upon disaster, from
that day, whithersoever the Furies have driven those errant bands, they
have poured pell-mell over remote lands, over every obstacle, like a
storm of hail or a pestilence. No streams or rocks availed to defend
their country. Neither Rhodope nor huge Athos nor Hebrus could save
Thrace; the Bessi cursed the Strymon crossed with scornful ease and the
Haliacmon that flowed swiftly and to no purpose. The Macedonians in
amaze saw Olympus, too high even for clouds, trodden by them as it had
been a plain. Thessaly bewails the uselessness of Tempe and conquered
Oeta’s ridges made a mock. Sperchius and Enipeus, loved of maidens,
served to wash the barbarians’ hair. The barrier of Pindus could not
save the Dryopes nor cloud-capped Leucates the coasts of Actium.
Thermopylae itself that had once more boldly withstood the Persians
yielded a passage

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                              Page 140

    Thermopylae; vallata mari Scironia rupes
    et duo continuo conectens aequora muro
    Isthmos et angusti patuerunt claustra Lechaei:                     190
    nec tibi Parrhasios licuit munire colonos
    frondosis, Erymanthe, iugis, equitataque summi
    culmina Taygeti trepidae vidistis Amyclae.
      Tandem supplicium cunctis pro montibus Alpes
    exegere Getas; tandem tot flumina victor                           195
    vindicat Eridanus. docuit nunc exitus alte
    fatorum secreta regi. quisquamne reclusis
    Alpibus ulterius Latii fore credidit umbram?
    nonne velut capta rumor miserabilis urbe
    trans freta, trans Gallos Pyrenaeumque cucurrit?                   200
    Famaque nigrantes succincta pavoribus alas
    secum cuncta trahens a Gadibus usque Britannum
    terruit Oceanum et nostro procul axe remotam
    insolito belli tremefecit murmure Thylen?
      Mandemusne Noti flabris quoscumque timores                       205
    pertulimus, festae doleant ne tristibus aures?
    an potius meminisse iuvat semperque vicissim
    gaudia praemissi cumulant inopina dolores?
    utque sub occidua iactatis Pleiade nautis
    commendat placidum maris inclementia portum,                       210
    sic mihi tunc maior Stilicho, cum laeta periclis
    metior atque illi redeunt in corda tumultus.
      Nonne videbantur, quamvis adamante rigentes,
    turribus invalidis fragiles procumbere muri
    ferrataeque Getis ultro se pandere portae?                         215

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                              Page 141

at the first onset. Sciron’s cliffs protected by the waves, the wall
that joins sea to sea across the Isthmus of Corinth, the narrow pass of
Lechaeum, all lay open to their approach. Thou, Erymanthus, couldst not
protect the people of Arcadia with thy leafy ridges and thou, Amyclae,
didst tremble to see the enemy’s cavalry on the heights of Taygetus.

At last, however, the Alps avenged on the Getae the disgrace of all
mountains else and victorious Eridanus that of all other rivers. The
event has proved that deep hidden are the ways of destiny. Who would
have believed that, once a passage had been forced over the Alps, so
much as the shadow of Italy’s name would survive? Did not the awful
report of Rome’s fall cross the sea and spread beyond Gaul and over the
Pyrenees? Did not Rumour, her sable wing sped on with panic, sweeping
all before her in her flight, affright Ocean from Britain’s coast to
Gades’ city and far away from our world make distant Thule tremble with
the unaccustomed echoes of war?

And shall we fling to the South-wind’s blasts all the terrors we
endured, lest mid feasting sadness trouble our ears? Or rather does
such memory delight and does precursive pain ever changefully heighten
unexpected joy? Even as to sailors storm-tossed at the Pleiads’ setting
the rudeness of the sea commends the harbour’s calm, so to me does
Stilicho appear greater when I compare happiness with hazard and all
those troubles come again before my mind.

Did not our steel-girt walls seem to fall at the enemy’s attack, feeble
as the towers that crowned them, and our doors of iron to open of their
own accord to give him entry? It seemed as though

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                              Page 142

    nec vallum densaeque sudes arcere volantes
    cornipedum saltus? iamiam conscendere puppes
    Sardoniosque habitare sinus et inhospita Cyrni
    saxa parant vitamque freto spumante tueri.
    ipsa etiam diffisa brevi Trinacria ponto,                          220
    si rerum natura sinat, discedere longe
    optat et Ionium refugo laxare Peloro.
    fultaque despiciens auro laquearia dives
    tutior Aeoliis mallet vixisse cavernis;
    iamque oneri creduntur opes tandemque libido                       225
    haesit avaritiae gravioribus obruta curis.
    utque est ingenioque loquax et plurima fingi
    permittens credique timor, tunc somnia vulgo
    narrari, tunc monstra deum monitusque sinistri:
    quid meditentur aves, quid cum mortalibus aether
    fulmineo velit igne loqui, quid carmine poscat                     231
    fatidico custos Romani carbasus aevi.
    territat adsiduus lunae labor atraque Phoebe
    noctibus aerisonas crebris ululata per urbes.
    nec credunt vetito fraudatam Sole sororem                          235
    telluris subeunte globo, sed castra secutas
    barbara Thessalidas patriis lunare venenis
    incestare iubar. tunc anni signa prioris
    et si quod fortasse quies neglexerat omen,
    addit cura novis: lapidosos grandinis ictus                        240
    molitasque examen apes passimque crematas

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                              Page 143

no rampart nor palisade were stout enough to withstand his cavalry’s
wind-swift onset. Even now they[50] make ready to go aboard their
ships, to dwell in Sardinia’s creeks and Corsica’s rocky, inhospitable
coast, and to guard their lives behind the foaming main. Sicily
herself, mistrusting the narrow strait, would fain retreat, did but
Nature permit, and open a wider passage for the Ionian waves by
withdrawing Pelorus. The rich, setting no store by their fretted
golden ceilings, would rather have lived in greater security in an
Aeolian cave. Soon, too, wealth was considered a burden, and greed
of gain was curbed at last by reason of anxieties more overwhelming.
Then--for that fear is by nature a babbler and allows all sorts of
tales to be invented and believed--dreams, portents, and omens of
ill were discussed on all sides. What, men asked, did that flight of
birds portend, what message would heaven fain deliver to mortals by
the thunderbolt, what did those prophetic books demand that guard the
destiny of Rome? Constant eclipses of the moon alarmed us and night
after night throughout the cities of Italy sounded wailings and the
beating of brazen gongs to scare the shadow from off her darkened
face. Men would not believe that the moon had been defrauded of her
brother the sun, forbidden to give light by the interposition of the
earth; they thought that Thessalian witches, accompanying the barbarian
armies, were darkening her rays with their country’s magic spells. Then
with these new portents their troubled minds link the signs of the past
year and any omens that perchance peaceful days had neglected--showers
of stones, bees swarming in strange places, furious

    [50] _i.e._ the inhabitants of Italy.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 144

    perbacchata domos nullis incendia causis
    et numquam caelo spectatum impune cometem,
    qui primum roseo Phoebi prolatus ab ortu,
    qua micat astrigera senior cum coniuge Cepheus;                    245
    inde Lycaoniam paulatim expulsus ad Arcton
    crine vago Getici foedavit sidera Plaustri,
    donec in exiguum moriens vanesceret ignem.
      Sed gravius mentes caesorum ostenta luporum
    horrificant. duo quippe lupi sub principis ora,                    250
    dum campis exercet equos, violenter adorti
    agmen et excepti telis inmane relatu
    prodigium miramque notam duxere futuri.
    nam simul humano geminas de corpore palmas
    utraque perfossis emisit belua costis:                             255
    illo laeva tremens, hoc dextera ventre latebat
    intentis ambae digitis et sanguine vivo.
    scrutari si vera velis, fera nuntia Martis
    ora sub Augusti casurum prodidit hostem,
    utque manus utero virides patuere retecto,                         260
    Romula post ruptas virtus sic emicat Alpes.
    sed malus interpres rerum metus omne trahebat
    augurium peiore via, truncataque membra
    nutricemque lupam Romae regnoque minari.
    tunc reputant annos interceptoque volatu                           265
    vulturis incidunt properatis saecula metis.
      Solus erat Stilicho, qui desperantibus augur
    sponderet meliora manu, dubiaeque salutis

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                              Page 145

fires destroying houses from no known cause, a comet--ne’er seen in
heaven without disaster--which first rose where Phoebus lifts his rosy
morning beam and old Cepheus shines together with starry Andromeda,
his spouse; then it withdrew little by little to the constellation of
Lycaon’s daughter[51] and with its errant tail dimmed the stars of the
Getic Wain until at last its dying fires grew feeble and vanished.

But what terrified men’s minds still more was the portent of the two
slaughtered wolves. Ay, before the Emperor’s face as he practised his
cavalry upon the plain two wolves savagely attacked his escort. Slain
by darts they disclosed a horrid portent and a wondrous sign of what
was to be. In each animal, on its being cut open, was found a human
hand, in the stomach of one a left hand, in that of the other a right
was discovered, both still twitching, the fingers stretched out and
suffused with living blood. Wouldest thou search out the truth, the
beast as messenger of Mars foretold that the foe would fall before
the emperor’s eyes. As the hands were found to be living when the
stomachs were cut open, so, when the Alps had been broken through,
the might of Rome was to be discovered unimpaired. But fear, ever a
poor interpreter, read disaster in the portent; severed hands, ’twas
said, and nursing wolf threatened destruction on Rome and her empire.
Then they reckoned up the years and, cutting off the flight of the
twelfth vulture, tried to shorten the centuries of Rome’s existence by
hastening the end.[52]

’Twas Stilicho alone who by his courage assured despairing Rome the
promise of a better fate; at

    [51] _i.e._ The Great Bear.

    [52] The twelve vultures seen by Romulus (Livy i. 7. 1) were
    interpreted as twelve centuries of Roman power. Taking the
    traditional date of the founding of the city (754 B.C.) more than
    eleven centuries had already passed.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 146

    dux idem vatesque fuit. “durate parumper”
    inquit “et excussis muliebribus ore querellis                      270
    fatorum toleremus onus. nil nautica prosunt
    turbatae lamenta rati nec segnibus undae
    planctibus aut vanis mitescunt flamina votis.
    nunc instare manu, toto nunc robore niti
    communi pro luce decet: succurrere velis,                          275
    exhaurire fretum, varios aptare rudentes
    omnibus et docti iussis parere magistri.
    non, si perfidia nacti penetrabile tempus
    inrupere Getae, nostras dum Raetia vires
    occupat atque alio desudant Marte cohortes,                        280
    idcirco spes omnis abit. mirabile posset
    esse mihi, si fraude nova vel calle reperto
    barbarus ignotas invaderet inscius Alpes;
    nunc vero geminis clades repetita tyrannis
    famosum vulgavit iter nec nota fefellit                            285
    semita praestructum bellis civilibus hostem.
    per solitas venere vias, aditusque sequendos
    barbarico Romana dedit discordia bello.
      “Sed nec praeteritis haec res incognita saeclis:
    saepe lacessitam, sed non impune, fatemur                          290
    Ausoniam. haec Senonum restinxit sanguine flammas,
    haec et Teutonico quondam patefacta furori
    colla catenati vidit squalentia Cimbri.
    vile decus, quod non erexit praevius horror;
    ingentes generant discrimina magna triumphos.                      295
      “Quid turpes iam mente fugas, quid Gallica rura

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 147

this crisis he showed himself by his courage at once general and seer.
“A little patience,” said he; “away with womanly repinings: let us bear
with fortitude whatever fate lays upon us. What good do the sailors’
cries do to the storm-driven vessel? Neither waves nor winds will abate
their fury for coward tears or useless prayer. Now for the general
safety it befits us to use every effort, to struggle with all our
strength--to attend to the sails, work the pumps, manage the various
ropes, and obey every order of the skilful captain. Because the Getae
have broken through, seizing by treachery the hour for striking home,
what time Raetia claimed our attention and our regiments were busied
with another war--not for that is all hope lost. Marvel indeed I might,
if by some new guile, some discovered path, the barbarian ignorantly
marched over the unexplored Alps; now, however, the successive defeats
of the two tyrants[53] have made the road notorious, nor has the foeman
missed the well-known track that was built for him by our civil strife.
They have come a well-known way and Roman discord has opened the
approach to barbaric war.

“Past generations have known a like fate. Full often, we know, has
Italy been attacked--but never without the enemy’s paying dear. With
their own blood did our country extinguish the fires lit by the Senones
and, once the victim of a German invasion, she soon saw the squalid
necks of Teutons and Cimbri loaded with the chains of captivity. Of
little value is that glory whose worth has not been augmented by
previous hardship; ’tis great dangers that beget great triumphs.

“Do you meditate shameful flight and fix your

    [53] Maximus and Eugenius.

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                              Page 148

    respicitis Latioque libet post terga relicto
    longinquum profugis Ararim praecingere castris?
    scilicet Arctois concessa gentibus urbe
    considet regnum Rhodano capitique superstes                        300
    truncus erit? vestros stimulant si pignora sensus,
    me quoque non impar naturae cura remordet,
    nec ferro sic corda rigent ut nosse recusem
    quam sanctum soceri nomen, quam dulce mariti,
    quantus prolis amor. sed numquam oblita decoris
    obscaenam latebram pietas ignava requiret.                         306
    nec vobis fortis monitor, mihi cautior uni:
    hic coniunx, hic progenies, hic carior omni
    luce gener; pars nulla mei subducta procellae.
    accipe tu nostrae, tellus Oenotria, mentis                         310
    vincula communes tecum subeuntia casus,
    exiguamque moram muris impende tuendis,
    dum redeo lectum referens in classica robur.”
      His dictis pavidi firmavit inertia vulgi
    pectora migrantisque fugam compescuit aulae;                       315
    ausaque tum primum tenebris emergere pulsis
    Hesperia, ut secum iunxisse pericula vidit
    Augustum, tantoque sui stetit obside fati.
    protinus, umbrosa vestit qua litus oliva
    Larius et dulci mentitur Nerea fluctu,                             320
    parva puppe lacum praetervolat; ocius inde
    scandit inaccessos brumali sidere montes
    nil hiemis caelive memor. sic ille relinquens
    ieiunos antro catulos inmanior exit

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 149

eyes on Gaul? Would you leave Latium and establish on the banks of the
Saône a camp of refugees? Is Rome to be ceded to Arctic tribes, our
empire to settle on the Rhone, and shall the trunk survive the head?
If the thought of your children has any weight with you, remember that
I too am not unaffected by similar feelings of nature; my heart is not
so hard that I do not nor will not recognize the sacred ties that bind
son to father-in-law, wife to husband and children to sire. But never,
forgetting honour, shall cowardly affection seek refuge in ignominious
flight. Nor do I give you bold advice, more careful for myself alone;
here is my family, my wife, and her father whom I love more than life
itself; not one of my relations is beyond the reach of this tempest.
O land of Italy, know that my heart is set on bearing with thee
whatsoever ills thou art called on to bear. Romans, hold your walls but
for a short while till I return, bringing back to the sound of trumpets
the flower of your host.”

With these words he instilled courage into the fearful hearts of the
citizens and checked any inclination towards flight in the Court. The
dark shadow fled and Italy dared raise her head once more seeing her
emperor ready to share her perils, and stood her ground with such
a hostage for fortune. Where Larius clothes his banks with shady
olive-trees and with his fresh water imitates the sea’s salt waves,
Stilicho crossed the lake with all speed in a small boat. Next he
ascended those mountains, inaccessible in winter, with no thought for
the season or the weather. Even so a lion, leaving his starving cubs
within the

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 150

    hiberna sub nocte leo tacitusque per altas                         325
    incedit furiale nives; stant colla pruinis
    aspera; flaventes adstringit stiria saetas;
    nec meminit leti nimbosve aut frigora curat,
    dum natis alimenta parat.
                              Sublimis in Arcton
    prominet Hercyniae confinis Raetia silvae,                         330
    quae se Danuvii iactat Rhenique parentem
    utraque Romuleo praetendens flumina regno:
    primo fonte breves, alto mox gurgite regnant
    et fluvios cogunt unda coëunte minores
    in nomen transire suum. te Cimbrica Tethys                         335
    divisum bifido consumit, Rhene, meatu;
    Thracia quinque vadis Histrum vorat Amphitrite:
    ambo habiles remis, ambo glacialia secti
    terga rotis, ambo Boreae Martique sodales.
    sed latus, Hesperiae quo Raetia iungitur orae,                     340
    praeruptis ferit astra iugis panditque tremendam
    vix aestate viam. multi ceu Gorgone visa
    obriguere gelu; multos hausere profundae
    vasta mole nives, cumque ipsis saepe iuvencis
    naufraga candenti merguntur plaustra barathro.                     345
    interdum subitam glacie labente ruinam
    mons dedit et tepidis fundamina subruit astris
    pendenti male fida solo.

                            Per talia tendit
    frigoribus mediis Stilicho loca. nulla Lyaei
    pocula; rara Ceres; raptos contentus in armis                      350
    delibasse cibos madidoque oneratus amictu

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 151

cave, issues forth hunger-maddened some winter night and with silent
tread goes out across the deep snow with murder in his heart, his mane
frozen about his shoulders, and icicles clinging to his tawny coat;
nought recks he of death nor cares for snow nor frost if only he can
procure food for his little ones.

Near to the Hercynian forest the uplands of Raetia stretch out towards
the north, Raetia, proud parent of Danube and Rhine, twain rivers that
she sets to guard the empire of Rome. Small are their streams at first,
but soon they grow in depth and like kings compel the lesser waters to
pass with tributary wave beneath their name. The Cimbric ocean receives
Rhine’s flood outpoured through his two mouths; the Thracian wave
swallows that of Ister flowing out through five channels. Both rivers
are navigable though both bear at times the marks of chariot-wheels
upon their frozen surface; stout allies both of the north wind and the
god of war. But on the side where Raetia marches with Italy precipitous
mountains touch the sky, scarce even in summer offering an awful path.
Many a man has there been frozen to death as though he had looked on
the Gorgon’s head; many have been engulfed beneath vast masses of snow,
and often are carts and the oxen that draw them plunged into the white
depths of the crevasse. Sometimes the mountain plunges downwards in an
avalanche of ice, loosening neath a warmer sky foundations that trust
vainly in the precipitous slope.

Such was the country over which Stilicho passed in mid winter. No wine
was there; Ceres’ gifts were sparing; ’twas enough to snatch a hurried
meal, eaten sword in hand, while, burdened with rain-drenched

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                              Page 152

    algentem pulsabat equum. nec mollia fesso
    strata dedere torum; tenebris si caeca repressit
    nox iter, aut spelaea subit metuenda ferarum
    aut pastorali iacuit sub culmine fultus                            355
    cervicem clipeo. stat pallidus hospite magno
    pastor et ignoto praeclarum nomine vultum
    rustica sordenti genetrix ostendit alumno.
    illa sub horrendis praedura cubilia silvis,
    illi sub nivibus somni curaeque laborque                           360
    pervigil hanc requiem terris, haec otia rebus
    insperata dabant; illae tibi, Roma, salutem
    Alpinae peperere casae.
                            Iam foedera gentes
    exuerant Latiique audita clade feroces
    Vindelicos saltus et Norica rura tenebant.                         365
    ac veluti famuli, mendax quos mortis erilis
    nuntius in luxum falso rumore resolvit,
    dum marcent epulis atque inter vina chorosque
    persultat vacuis effrena licentia tectis,
    si reducem dominum sors improvisa revexit,                         370
    haerent attoniti libertatemque perosus
    conscia servilis praecordia concutit horror:
    sic ducis adspectu cuncti stupuere rebelles,
    inque uno princeps Latiumque et tota refulsit
    Roma viro. frons laeta parum, non tristior aequo,
    non deiecta malis, mixta sed nobilis ira:                          376
    qualis in Herculeo, quotiens infanda iubebat
    Eurystheus, fuit ore dolor vel qualis in atram
    sollicitus nubem maesto Iove cogitur aether.
      “Tantane vos” inquit “Getici fiducia belli                       380
    erigit? hinc animo frustra tumuistis inani?
    non ita Romanum fati violentia nomen

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                              Page 153

cloak, he urged on his half-frozen steed. No soft bed received his
weary limbs. If the darkness forced him to halt in his advance he would
either enter some dreadful beast’s den or sleep in some shepherd’s hut,
his head pillowed upon his shield. The shepherd stands pale at the
sight of his stately guest, and ignorant of his name the rustic mother
points out to her squalid infant the glory of his face. It was those
hard couches beneath the rough pines, those nights amid the snow, all
that care and anxious toil, that won this peace for the world, this
tranquillity it had despaired of for the empire. From out those Alpine
huts, Rome, came thy salvation.

Now had the peoples broken their treaties and, encouraged by the news
of Latium’s trouble, had seized upon the glades of Vindelicia and
the fields of Noricum. Like slaves whom news of their master’s death
lures into luxury with an idle tale, if mid the debauch and while wild
licence riots with wine and dance some unexpected chance bring back
their lord, then they stand panic-stricken and, abhorring liberty,
servile terror shakes their guilty souls; so all the rebels were struck
with terror at the sight of the general and in one man the Emperor,
Latium and all Rome blazed before their eyes. Joy sat not upon his
countenance nor excess of gloom nor yet dejection by reason of Rome’s
reverses but nobility and indignation mixed, such as filled Hercules at
Eurystheus’ inhuman orders, or such as dims the face of heaven when at
Jove’s frown the troubled sky is gathered into a murky cloud.

“Put ye such faith,” he cried, “in Getic arms? Is it they that swell
your hearts with empty pride? Fate has not brought Rome’s name so low
that she

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                              Page 154

    opprimit, ut vestros nequeat punire tumultus
    parte sui. ne vos longe sermone petito
    demorer, exemplum veteris cognoscite facti:                        385
    cum ferus Ausonias perfringeret Hannibal arces
    et Trebiam saevo geminassent funere Cannae,
    nequiquam Emathium pepulit spes vana Philippum,
    ut velut adflictos ferro temptaret inerti.
    Romanos commovit atrox iniuria patres,                             390
    urgerent maiora licet, graviterque tulere,
    urbibus inter se claris de culmine rerum
    congressis, aliquid gentes audere minores.
    nec poenam differre placet, sed bella gerenti
    Punica Laevino regis quoque proelia mandant.                       395
    paruit imperiis consul, fususque Philippus,
    vilia dum gravibus populis interserit arma,
    praetereunte manu didicit non esse potentum
    temptandas, mediis quamvis in luctibus, iras.”
      Hoc monitu pariter nascentia bella repressit                     400
    et bello quaesivit opes legitque precantes
    auxilio mensus numerum, qui congruus esset
    nec gravis Italiae formidandusve regenti.
      Nec minus accepto nostrae rumore cohortes
    (sic ducis urget amor) properantibus undique signis
    conveniunt, visoque animi Stilichone recepti                       406
    singultus varios lacrimosaque gaudia miscent:
    sic armenta boum, vastis quae turbida silvis
    sparsit hiems, cantus ac sibila nota magistri

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                              Page 155

cannot punish your rebellion with but a handful of her forces. Not
to delay you with foreign tales, hear this example from your deeds
of old. When warlike Hannibal was spreading destruction throughout
the cities of Italy, and Cannae had doubled Trebia’s cruel losses, a
vain hope drove Philip of Macedon to turn his feeble sword against a
people which, as he thought, was in difficulties. The monstrous insult
roused the Roman Fathers, although more pressing dangers were crowding
upon them, and they took it ill that, while two great cities were
disputing the mastery of the world, a lesser race should be insolent.
They determine upon instant vengeance and command Laevinus, even while
he conducts the war with Carthage, to do battle also with the king of
Macedonia. The consul obeyed his orders, and Philip, intruding his
feeble arms between mighty nations, was routed by a passing band and
learned that it does not do to tempt the anger of powerful peoples even
when they are in distress.”

With this warning Stilicho alike checked the threatened war and won
new allies for war, enrolling them at their entreaty and setting such
number to their forces as should best suit--neither a burden to Italy
nor a terror to its lord.

Then, indeed, at the news of his return, the legions, such love they
bore their general, hastened together from every side, and at the sight
of Stilicho their courage revived and they broke out into sobbings and
tears of joy. So when a herd of cattle has been scattered throughout
some vast forest by the storm’s violence the beasts eagerly make for
the sound of the ox-herd’s well-known song or whistle and

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 156

    certatim repetunt et avitae pascua vallis                          410
    inque vicem se voce regunt gaudentque fideles
    reddere mugitus et, qua sonus attigit aurem,
    rara per obscuras adparent cornua frondes.
    adcurrit vicina manus, quam Raetia nuper
    Vandalicis auctam spoliis defensa probavit;                        415
    venit et extremis legio praetenta Britannis,
    quae Scotto dat frena truci ferroque notatas
    perlegit exanimes Picto moriente figuras;
    agmina quin etiam flavis obiecta Sygambris
    quaeque domant Chattos inmansuetosque Cheruscos,
    huc omnes vertere minas tutumque remotis                           421
    excubiis Rhenum solo terrore relinquunt.
    ullane posteritas credet? Germania quondam
    illa ferox populis, quae vix instantibus olim
    principibus tota poterat cum mole teneri,                          425
    iam sese placidam praebet Stilichonis habenis,
    ut nec praesidiis nudato limite temptet
    expositum calcare solum nec transeat amnem,
    incustoditam metuens attingere ripam.
      Celsior o cunctis unique aequande Camillo!                       430
    vestris namque armis Alarici fracta quievit
    ac Brenni rabies; confusis rebus uterque
    divinam tribuistis opem, sed tardior ille
    iam captae vindex patriae, tu sospitis ultor.
    o quantum mutata tuo fortuna regressu!                             435
    ut sese pariter diffudit in omnia regni
    membra vigor vivusque redit color urbibus aegris!

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 157

the pasture of their native vale, guiding their steps in answer to
his voice and glad faithfully to reply with lowing, while, wherever
his tones fall upon their ear, horns show themselves here and there
through the dark foliage. First hasten up the neighbouring troops,
their loyalty attested by their defence of Raetia and their mass of
spoil from Vindelicia; next the legion that had been left to guard
Britain,[54] the legion that kept the fierce Scots in check, whose men
had scanned the strange devices tattooed on the faces of the dying
Picts. Even the legions that faced the flaxen-haired Sygambri, and
those who held the Chatti and wild Cherusci in subjection hither turned
their threatening arms, leaving the Rhine, whose garrison they had
formed, defended by but one thing--the fear of Rome. Will any posterity
credit the tale? Germany, once the home of peoples so proud and fierce
that former emperors could scarce keep them in check with the whole
weight of their armies, now offers herself so willing a follower of
Stilicho’s guiding hand that she neither attempts an invasion of the
territory exposed to her attack by the removal of its frontier troops
nor crosses the stream, too timid to approach an undefended bank.

Greater art thou, Stilicho, than all; thine only rival is Camillus,
whose arms broke the rash power of Brennus as thine have broken that of
Alaric. At a time of dire peril ye both gave the aid of gods; but he
too late avenged a captured Rome, thou one still safe. What a reversal
of fortune did thy return bring about! A new vigour returned to every
part of our empire alike, and the glow of health came back to our
suffering cities. A

    [54] Legio II. Augusta. The legion referred to in l. 414 is probably
    III. Italica.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 158

    creditur Herculeis lucem renovasse lacertis
    femina dilecti fatis impensa mariti;
    et iuvenem spretae laniatum fraude novercae                        440
    non sine Circaeis Latonia reddidit herbis.
    Cretaque, si verax narratur fabula, vidit
    Minoum rupto puerum prodire sepulchro,
    quem senior vates avium clangore repertum
    gramine restituit: mirae nam munere sortis                         445
    dulcia mella necem, vitam dedit horridus anguis.
    at tuus adventus non unum corpus ab umbris,
    sed tot communi populos sub morte iacentes
    totaque Tartareis e faucibus oppida traxit.
      Ipso Roma die (nec adhuc ostenditur auctor)                      450
    personuit venisse ducem, laetisque Quirites
    vocibus auspicium certi plausere triumphi,
    muniti Stilichone suo. quis gaudia vero
    principis, amplexus alacris quis disserat aulae?
    pulveris ambiguam nubem speculamur ab altis                        455
    turribus, incerti socios adportet an hostes
    ille globus. mentem suspensa silentia librant,
    donec pulvereo sub turbine sideris instar
    emicuit Stilichonis apex et cognita fulsit
    canities. gavisa repens per moenia clamor                          460
    tollitur “ipse venit.” portas secura per omnes
    turba salutatis effunditur obvia signis.
    non iam dilectus miseri nec falce per agros

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 159

woman, so the story goes, who died to save the life of a loved husband,
was recalled to the upper world by the might of Hercules. Diana with
the help of Circe’s magic herbs restored to life Hippolytus whom the
scorned passion of a stepmother had caused to be torn in pieces. Crete,
if the fable be true, saw Glaucus, son of Minos, issue living from the
tomb; his body was discovered by the cries of birds to Polyidus, the
aged seer, who restored him to life by means of simples; strange indeed
was the ruling of fate which apportioned sweet honey as the cause
of his death and a hideous serpent as the restorer of his life.[55]
But thy return, Stilicho, recalled not one body from the shades but
countless peoples sunk in a common death, and snatched whole towns from
the jaws of Hell.

That very day Rome rang with the report (though none ever knew its
author) that the hero had arrived, and the citizens, assured of
Stilicho’s protection, applauded this augury of certain victory. Who
could tell of the Emperor’s joy, who of the courtiers’ eager greetings?
From the lofty battlements we sight a distant cloud of dust and know
not whether its obscurity conceals friend or foe. Suspense keeps us all
in silence. Then suddenly from that dusty cloud emerged the helm of
Stilicho, glittering like a star, and we recognized his gleaming white
hair. Up rose the happy shout from the walls: “’Tis he.” Safe at last
the crowd surges out through the gates to meet and greet the army’s
return. Gone for ever are our wretched impressed levies; no longer

    [55] Glaucus, son of Minos, fell into a vat of honey and was
    drowned. Polyidus, the seer, led by an oracle, discovered the body,
    and was, at Minos’ command, immured with it in a tomb until he
    should find a means of restoring it to life. Two snakes approached
    the corpse, one of which Polyidus slew. Observing the other bring
    its dead companion to life by placing a certain herb in its mouth,
    Polyidus applied the same method with success to the resuscitation
    of Glaucus (Hyginus, _Fab._ 136. Both Sophocles and Euripides wrote
    tragedies on the subject; see Soph. _Frag._ ed. Pearson, vol. ii.
    pp. 56 _sqq._).

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 160

    deposita iaculum vibrans ignobile messor
    nec temptat[56] clipeum proiectis sumere rastris                   465
    Bellona ridente Ceres humilisque novorum
    seditio clamosa ducum: sed vera iuventus,
    verus ductor adest et vivida Martis imago.
      Prospera sed quantum nostrae spes addita menti,
    tantum exempta Getis, qui vertice proximus astris
    post Alpes iam cuncta sibi promisit apertas                        471
    nil superesse ratus, postquam tot lumina pubis,
    tot subitos pedites, equitum tot conspicit alas
    cinctaque fluminibus crebris ac moenibus arva
    seque velut clausum laqueis, sub pectore furtim                    475
    aestuat et nimium prono fervore petitae
    iam piget Italiae, sperataque Roma teneri
    visa procul. magni subeunt iam taedia coepti.
    occultat tamen ore metum primosque suorum
    consultare iubet bellis annisque verendos.                         480
    crinigeri sedere patres, pellita Getarum
    curia, quos plagis decorat numerosa cicatrix
    et tremulos regit hasta gradus et nititur altis
    pro baculo contis non exarmata senectus.
    hic aliquis gravior natu, cui plurima dictis                       485
    consiliisque fides, defixus lumina terrae
    concutiensque comam capuloque adclinis eburno:
      “Si numero non fallor” ait “tricesima currit
    bruma fere, rapidum postquam transnavimus Histrum,
    Romanamque manum tantis eludimus annis.                            490
    sed numquam Mavors adeo constrinxit in artum

    [56] _temptat_ codd.; Birt _temptans_.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 161

does the reaper, laying aside his sickle, try to hurl the impotent
javelin, nor Ceres lay aside her harrow and, to the amusement of
Bellona, essay the buckler. Stilled are the noisy wrangles of untried
leaders; here is Rome’s true strength, her true leader, Mars in human
form.

The more happy hopes grew in our hearts the more they deserted the
Getae, who, touching the stars with their heads, after crossing the
Alps accounted all their own and deemed nothing left to do. But when
they saw all our glorious youth, all the quickly levied infantry, all
the squadrons of horse, a countryside protected by so many rivers and
fortresses, and themselves caught in a snare, a trouble they dared not
voice seized their hearts and a regret that they had invaded Italy with
too forward eagerness; and Rome they hoped within their grasp seemed
far away. Weariness of their mighty undertaking steals over them. Yet
Alaric’s face conceals his fear; he bids to the council of war those
whose age or prowess had gained them the dignity of leadership. There
sat the senate of long-haired, skin-clad Getic leaders. Many a scar
received in battle adorned their faces, spears guide their tottering
steps and, instead of a staff, old age, refusing to disarm, supports
itself on their tall shafts. Then arose one older than the rest,
trusted for his counsel and advice, who, fixing his gaze upon the
ground, shaking his hoary locks and leaning on his ivory hilt, thus
spake: “If I miscount not the years this is well-nigh the thirtieth
winter since we swam across the swift Ister. All that time we have
escaped defeat at the hands of Rome. Yet never, Alaric, has Mars
brought your fortunes to such

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 162

    res, Alarice, tuas. per tot certamina docto
    crede seni, qui te tenero vice patris ab aevo
    gestatum parva solitus donare pharetra
    atque aptare breves umeris puerilibus arcus:                       495
    saepe quidem frustra monui, servator ut icti
    foederis Emathia tutus tellure maneres;
    sed quoniam calidae rapuit te flamma iuventae,
    nunc saltem, si cura tibi manet ulla tuorum,
    his claustris evade, precor, dumque agmina longe,
    dum licet, Hesperiis praeceps elabere terris,                      501
    ne nova praedari cupiens et parta reponas
    pastorique lupus scelerum delicta priorum
    intra saepta luas. quid palmitis uber Etrusci,
    quid mihi nescioquam proprio cum Thybride Romam
    semper in ore geris? referunt si vera parentes,                    506
    hanc urbem insano nullus qui Marte petivit
    laetatus violasse redit; nec numina sedem
    destituunt: iactata procul dicuntur in hostem
    fulmina divinique volant pro moenibus ignes,                       510
    seu caelum seu Roma tonat. si temnis Olympum,
    a magno Stilichone cave, qui semper iniquos
    Fortuna famulante premit. scis ipse, per oras
    Arcadiae quam densa rogis cumulaverit ossa,
    sanguine quam largo Graios calefecerit amnes;                      515
    extinctusque fores, ni te sub nomine legum
    proditio regnique favor texisset Eoi.”
      Talia grandaevum flammata fronte loquentem

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 163

straits. Take the advice of an old man who has been through countless
fights, one who like a father was wont to give thee in thine earliest
youth little quivers to sling across thy back and to fit short bows
to thy young shoulders. Often did I urge in vain that thou should’st
observe the treaty and remain safe at home in Emathia. But if the fire
of hot youth hurried thee into war, now at least, I beg thee, make
good thine escape from out this net if thou hast any love left for
thy people. The enemy’s forces are far away; thou hast the chance;
flee headlong from Italy’s lands lest, in thy desire for fresh spoils,
thou lose even what thou hast got and like a wolf pay the penalty
of former depredations to the shepherd by being killed within the
sheepfold. Why dost thou have ever on thy lips the richness of Tuscan
vineyards and some Rome or other with its Tiber? If our parents speak
sooth, never has any who has assailed that city in mad war returned
to boast that he has done her violence. The gods desert not their own
home; thunderbolts, they tell, are hurled from afar upon her foes
and unearthly fires flash before her walls, whether ’tis heaven or
Rome that thunders. If thou fearest not the gods beware the might of
Stilicho; fortune is ever on his side against assaulting enemies. Thou
thyself knowest how high with bones he piled our funeral pyres in
Arcadia, and with what vast outpourings of our blood he made the rivers
of Greece run warm; and thou hadst been killed had not treason in the
guise of law and the goodwill of the Emperor of the East protected
thee.”

While the elder spake thus Alaric, eyeing him

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 164

    obliquisque tuens oculis non pertulit ultra,
    sed rupit rabidas accensa superbia voces:                          520
      “Si non mentis inops fraudataque sensibus aetas
    praeberet veniam, numquam haec opprobria linguae
    turpia Danuvius me sospite ferret inultus.
    anne, tot Augustos Hebro qui teste fugavi,
    te patiar suadente fugam, cum cesserit omnis                       525
    obsequiis natura meis? subsidere nostris
    sub pedibus montes, arescere vidimus amnes.
    non ita di Getici faxint manesque parentum,
    ut mea converso relegam vestigia cursu.
    hanc ego vel victor regno vel morte tenebo                         530
    victus humum. per tot populos urbesque cucurri,
    fregi Alpes galeisque Padum victricibus hausi:
    quid restat nisi Roma mihi? gens robore nostra
    tum quoque pollebat, nullis cum fideret armis.
    at nunc Illyrici postquam mihi tradita iura                        535
    meque suum fecere ducem, tot tela, tot enses,
    tot galeas multo Thracum sudore paravi
    inque meos usus vectigal vertere ferri
    oppida legitimo iussu Romana coëgi.
    sic me fata fovent; ipsi, quos omnibus annis                       540
    vastabam, servire dati: nocitura gementes
    arma dabant flammisque diu mollitus et arte
    in sua damna chalybs fabro lugente rubebat.
    hortantes his adde deos. non somnia nobis
    nec volucres, sed clara palam vox edita luco:                      545
    ‘rumpe omnes, Alarice, moras; hoc impiger anno
    Alpibus Italiae ruptis penetrabis ad urbem.’

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 165

askance with fiery brow, brooked his words no longer, but his enkindled
pride broke forth in furious speech: “Did not witless age that has
deprived thee of thy senses grant thee indulgence never, on my life,
should Danube listen unavenged to such coward insults. Am I who have
routed so many emperors (Hebrus’ river is my witness) to endure flight
at thine advice--I whom all nature obeys? Have I not seen the mountains
levelled at my feet, the rivers dried up? Never may my country’s gods,
the spirits of my forefathers, allow that I retrace my footsteps on
a backward path. This land shall be mine whether I hold it in fee as
conqueror or in death as conquered. I have overrun so many peoples
and cities, I have burst through the Alps and drunk of the waters of
Eridanus from out a victor’s helmet. What is left me but Rome? My
nation was strong even when it has no allied arms to help it. But
now that I hold sway over Illyria, now that its people has made me
their leader, I have forced the Thracians to forge me spears, swords,
helmets with the sweat of their brows, and Roman towns (whose rightful
overlord I now am) to contribute iron for mine own uses. Thus is fate
on my side. Rome, whose territories I have laid waste year by year,
has become my slave. ’Tis she has supplied me with arms; her own metal
has glowed in the furnace, artfully molten and fashioned for her own
undoing by reluctant smiths. The gods, too, urge me on. Not for me are
dreams or birds but the clear cry uttered openly from the sacred grove:
‘Away with delay, Alaric; boldly cross the Italian Alps this year and
thou shalt reach the city.’ Thus far the

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 166

    huc iter usque datur. quis iam post talia segnis
    ambigat aut caelo dubitet parere vocanti?”
      Sic ait hortatusque suos belloque viaeque                        550
    instruit. attollunt vanos oracula fastus.
    o semper tacita sortes ambage malignae
    eventuque patens et nescia vatibus ipsis
    veri sera fides! Ligurum regione suprema
    pervenit ad fluvium miri cognominis “Urbem,”                       555
    atque illic domitus vix tandem interprete casu
    agnovit dubiis inlusa vocabula fatis.
      Nec non et Stilicho pugnam poscentia movit
    pleno castra gradu dictisque instigat euntes:
    “nunc nunc, o socii, temeratae sumite tandem                       560
    Italiae poenas, obsessi principis armis
    excusate nefas deploratumque Timavo
    vulnus et Alpinum gladiis abolete pudorem.
    hic est, quem totiens campis fudistis Achivis,
    quem discors odiisque anceps civilibus orbis,                      565
    non sua vis tutata diu, dum foedera fallax
    ludit et alternae periuria venditat aulae.
    credite nunc omnes, quas dira Britannia gentes,
    quas Hister, quas Rhenus alit, pendere paratas
    in speculis: uno tot proelia vincite bello.                        570
    Romanum reparate decus molemque labantis
    imperii fulcite umeris; hic omnia campus

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 167

path is mine. Who so cowardly as to dally after this encouragement or
to hesitate to obey the call of Heaven?”

So he spake and made ready his army to take the road, exhorting them to
combat. Prophecy serves to augment his vain pride. Ah! for the grudging
oracles ever dumb with mystic utterance; ’tis the event alone that (too
late) discloses the true meaning which the seers themselves could not
read. Alaric reached the farthest confines of Liguria where flows a
river with the strange name of the City.[57] There he suffered defeat
and even then scarcely realized (though that defeat made it clear) that
fate had tricked him with an ambiguous word.

Stilicho, too, fails not: at full speed he advanced his army clamorous
for battle and spurs their march with these words: “Friends of Rome,
the time has now come for you to exact vengeance for outraged Italy.
Wipe out the disgrace which the investment of your emperor by his
foes has brought upon you, and let your swords end the shame which
the defeat on the Timavus[58] and the enemy’s passage of the Alps has
caused to Rome. This is the foe whom ye so often put to flight on the
plains of Greece, whom not their own valour but a world torn by civil
strife has kept safe thus far, as they treacherously mock at treaties
and traffic in perjury now with the West, now the East. Reflect that all
the fierce peoples of Britain and the tribes who dwell on Danube’s and
Rhine’s banks are watching and stand ready. Win a victory now and so be
conquerors in many an unfought war. Restore Rome to her former glory;
the frame of empire is tottering; let your shoulders support it. A

    [57] The river on whose banks Pollentia stood. Sozomenes (ix. 6)
    mentions the oracle.

    [58] Little is known of this battle. It is to be attributed
    presumably to (?) November 401 and is doubtless connected with
    Alaric’s attempt on Aquileia (Jerome, _Contra Ruf._ iii. 21).

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 168

    vindicat, haec mundo pacem victoria sancit.
    non in Threiciis Haemi decernimus oris
    nec super Alpheas umbrantia Maenala ripas                          575
    constitimus; non hic Tegean Argosque tuemur:
    visceribus mediis ipsoque in corde videtis
    bella geri. patrem clipeis defendite Thybrim.”
    talia nunc pediti, turmae nunc mixtus equestri
    dicta dabat.
                  Simul externis praecepta ferebat                     580
    auxiliis. ibat patiens dicionis Alanus,
    qua nostrae iussere tubae, mortemque petendam
    pro Latio docuit gentis praefectus Alanae,
    cui natura breves animis ingentibus artus
    finxerat inmanique oculos infecerat ira;                           585
    vulneribus pars nulla vacat rescissaque contis
    gloria foedati splendet iactantior oris.
    ille tamen mandante procul Stilichone citatis
    acceleravit equis Italamque momordit harenam.
    felix Elysiisque plagis et carmine dignus,                         590
    qui male suspectam nobis impensius arsit
    vel leto purgare fidem; qui iudice ferro
    diluit inmeritum laudato sanguine crimen!
    morte viri turbatus eques flectebat habenas
    totaque praeciso nutassent agmina cornu,                           595
    ni celer instructa Stilicho legione secutus
    subsidiis peditum pugnam instaurasset equestrem.
      Quis Musis ipsoque licet Paeane recepto
    enarrare queat, quantum Gradivus in illa
    luce suae dederit fundator originis urbi?                          600
    altius haud umquam toto descendimus ense
    in iugulum Scythiae, tanta nec clade superbum

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 169

single battle and all will be well; but one victory and the world’s
peace will be assured. We fight not on the slopes of Thracian Haemus
nor await our foe where Maenalus throws his shadow across the banks of
Alpheus. We defend not Tegea nor Argos. No: as ye see, the scene of war
is the very centre and heart of Italy. Protect Father Tiber with your
shields.” Thus spake Stilicho to foot and horse.

Orders were at the same time sent to the auxiliary troops. The Alans,
now subject to Roman rule, followed our trumpets’ call, taught by
their chief to lay down their lives in the cause of Italy. Small was
his stature but great his soul and fierce anger blazed from his eyes.
Covered with wounds was he and with a visage rendered the more glorious
and the more proud by reason of the scar some spear-thrust had left. At
Stilicho’s command he hastened up with his cavalry, fated to bite the
soil of Italy in death. Happy warrior, worthy of the Elysian fields and
of my meed of song, who wast eager even at the cost of life to cleanse
thy loyalty from stain! The sword that spilled thy generous blood, it
was thy judge, acquitting thee of that most unjust charge of treachery.
Thrown into confusion by the hero’s death his horsemen turned rein
and, its flank thus exposed, the whole host would have reeled had not
Stilicho quickly gathered a legion and hastening to the spot rallied
the cavalry to the fight with infantry support.

What poet, were he inspired by the Muses or even by Apollo himself,
could relate the blessings showered that day by Mars upon the city
whose founder he himself was? Never was the sword of Rome plunged so
deep in the Scythians’ throat;

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 170

    contudimus Tanain vel cornua fregimus Histri.
    invisum miles sitiens haurire cruorem
    per varias vestes onerataque plaustra metallo                      605
    transit et argenti cumulos et caedis avarus
    contemptas proculcat opes; pretiosior auro
    sanguis erat; passim neglecti prodiga lucri
    turba furens strictis odium mucronibus explet.
    purpureos cultus absumptique igne Valentis                         610
    exuvias miserisque graves crateras ab Argis
    raptaque flagranti spirantia signa Corintho
    callidus ante pedes venientibus obicit hostis
    incassum; neque enim feralis praeda moratur,
    sed iustos praebent stimulos monumenta doloris.                    615
      Adseritur ferro captivum vulgus, et omnes
    diversae vocis populi, quos traxerat hostis
    servitio, tandem dominorum strage redempti
    blanda cruentatis adfigunt oscula dextris
    desertosque lares et pignora laeta revisunt.                       620
    miratur sua quemque domus cladesque renarrant
    ordine; tum grati referunt miracula belli.
      Quis tibi tunc, Alarice, dolor, cum Marte perirent
    divitiae spoliisque diu quaesita supellex
    pulsaretque tuas ululatus coniugis aures,                          625
    coniugis, invicto dudum quae freta marito
    demens Ausonidum gemmata monilia matrum
    Romanasque alta famulas cervice petebat!

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 171

never was Tanais’ pride abased by such a crushing defeat nor the horns
of Ister so broken. Thirsting to drink the enemy’s hateful blood our
soldiers passed by rich and varied raiment, carts laden with gold,
heaps of silver, and, eager for the foe’s destruction, spurned his
wealth. They held blood of more account than gold; none of them would
stoop to pick up the fortune that lay at their feet but drew their
swords and sated their wild fury. The crafty foe threw in the path
of our advancing troops the robes of scarlet dye, and other spoils
reft from Valens[59] who perished in the flames, heavy mixing-bowls
looted from unhappy Argos and lifelike statues rescued from burning
Corinth--all in vain, for this ill-omened booty, so far from delaying
our men, reminded them of past reverses and so the more inflamed their
righteous indignation.

The crowd of prisoners is loosed from its fetters and all the peoples
of different tongue whom the Getae had led away captive. Freed at last
by the slaughter of their captors they plant thankful kisses on the
bloody hands of their deliverers and hasten back to their long-lost
homes and their dear children. At each his household looks in wonder
as they tell the story of their woes and then recount the marvel of
welcome victory.

What must then have been thy despair, Alaric, when ruin overwhelmed thy
wealth and all that gear that years of robbing had won thee, when there
struck thine ear the cries of that wife of thine who, too confident
in her long unconquered husband, demanded in her madness the jewelled
necklaces of Italian matrons for her proud neck and Roman girls for her
tire-women! The fair girls

    [59] At Adrianople, Aug. 9, 378; see Introduction, p. vii.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 172

    scilicet Argolicas Ephyreiadasque puellas
    coeperat et pulchras iam fastidire Lacaenas.                       630
    sed dea quae nimiis obstat Rhamnusia votis
    ingemuit flexitque rotam: domat aspera victos
    pauperies, unoque die Romana rependit
    quidquid ter denis acies amisimus annis.

    O celebranda mihi cunctis Pollentia saeclis!                       635
    o meritum nomen! felicibus apta triumphis!
    virtutis fatale solum, memorabile bustum
    barbariae! nam saepe locis ac finibus illis
    plena lacessito rediit vindicta Quirino.
    illic Oceani stagnis excita supremis                               640
    Cimbrica tempestas alias emissa per Alpes
    isdem procubuit campis. iam protinus aetas
    adveniens geminae gentis permisceat ossa
    et duplices signet titulos commune tropaeum:
    “hic Cimbros fortesque Getas, Stilichone peremptos
    et Mario claris ducibus, tegit Itala tellus.                       646
    discite vesanae Romam non temnere gentes.”

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 173

of Greece from Corinth and Sparta were, forsooth, not good enough now
for so great a lady. But Nemesis, the goddess worshipped at Rhamnus,
she whose pleasure it is to check unbridled desire, was wroth and
turned her wheel; harsh poverty overwhelms the vanquished, and in one
day Rome’s arm requites all that we have lost in thirty years.

Thy glory, Pollentia, shall live for ever; worthy is thy name to be
celebrated by my song, a fit theme for rejoicing and for triumph. Fate
pre-ordained thee to be the scene of our victory and the burial-place
of the barbarians. Full often have thy fields and plains seen ample
vengeance exacted for aggression against the descendants of Romulus.
’Twas there, in that same countryside, that the Cimbric hordes, bearing
down upon Rome from Ocean’s farthest shore and crossing the Alps by
another pass, suffered their final defeat. The coming generation
should mingle the bones of these two races and engrave with this one
inscription the monument which records our double victory: “Here
beneath the soil of Italy lie the bodies of brave Cimbri and Getae:
their death they owed to our famous generals Marius and Stilicho.
Learn, presumptuous peoples, not to despise Rome.”

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 174




CARMINUM MINORUM CORPUSCULUM


I. (XIII.)

_Ad Stilichonem._

    Solitas galea fulgere comas,
    Stilicho, molli necte corona.
    cessent litui saevumque procul
    Martem felix taeda releget.
    tractus ab aula rursus in aulam                                      5
    redeat sanguis. patris officiis
    iunge potenti pignora dextra.
    gener Augusti pridem fueras,
    nunc rursus eris socer Augusti.
    quae iam rabies livoris erit?                                       10
    vel quis dabitur color invidiae?
    Stilicho socer est, pater est Stilicho.


II. (LXXXV.)

_Descriptio portus Smyrnensis._

    Urbs in conspectu montana cacumina velat
    tranquillo praetenta mari. ducentia portum
    cornua pacatas removent Aquilonibus undas.
    hic exarmatum terris cingentibus aequor
    clauditur et placidam discit servare quietem.                        5

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 175




SHORTER POEMS


I. (XIII.)

_To Stilicho._

Crown with a wreath of flowers, Stilicho, that head more often graced
with the shining helmet. Bid cease the trumpets and let the happy
marriage-torch banish fierce war afar. Let the blood derived from
a kingly race flow on through royal veins. Do a father’s duty and
establish the firm bond of wedlock between thy daughter and adoptive
son. Thou wert an emperor’s son-in-law; now an emperor will be thine.
What cause is there now for envy, what excuse for jealousy? Stilicho is
at once father and father-in-law.


II. (LXXXV.)

_Description of the harbour at Smyrna._

The city that meets our gaze veils the mountain peaks, fronting a
tranquil sea. The two headlands that enclose the harbour protect the
quiet water from the north wind. Here the sea is disarmed by the
encircling land and learns to lie in undisturbed tranquillity.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 176


III. (LXXXI.)

_Ad Aeternalem._

    Quidquid Castalio de gurgite Phoebus anhelat,
    quidquid fatidico mugit cortina recessu,
    carmina sunt; sed verba negant communia Musae.
    carmina sola loquor: sic me meus implet Apollo.


IV. (LIV.)

_Descriptio armenti._

    Non tales quondam species tulit armentorum
      tellus tergemino subdita Geryoni.
    non tales, Clitumne, lavas in gurgite tauros,
      Tarpeio referunt quos pia vota Iovi.
    non talis Tyrias sparsisse iuvencus harenas                          5
      dicitur, optatum quando revexit onus.
    non Cretaeus ager nec amati conscia tauri
      Gnosos nec similes paverit Ida feros.
    ipse et dispariles monstro commissus in artus
      qui crimen matris prodidit[60] ore novo                           10
    Cres puer haud talem potuisset reddere formam,
      portassent totum si fera membra patrem.

    [60] _prodidit_ cod. Med. (and Cuiacius). Birt _condidit_.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 177


III. (LXXXI.)

_To Aeternalis._[61]

Phoebus’ every breath from the Castalian spring, the tripod’s every
moan within the shrine of prophecy--all these are poetry. Of prose the
Muses will have none. In poetry only can I express myself, so wholly
does my patron, Apollo, possess me.


IV. (LIV.)

_Description of a Herd._

Not such were the beauteous herds that the land once ruled over by
triple Geryon produced. Not such the bulls thou bathest, Clitumnus,
in thy stream for pious vows to offer duly to Tarpeian Jove. Not such
the steer that, they say, scattered the sand of Tyre[62] what time
he brought home his well-loved burden. Not the fields of Crete, nor
Gnossos that knew of passion for a bull, nor Ida could have pastured
the like. Even he whose monstrous figure united ill-assorted limbs,
the Cretan child[63] who by his strange form revealed his mother’s
shame--even he could scarce have shown a shape so fair had _all_ his
rough limbs resembled those of his sire.

    [61] Aeternalis was proconsul of Asia in 396 (_Cod. Theod._ iv. 4.
    3, xi. 39. 12).

    [62] _Tyrias_, because Europa was the daughter of Phoenix,
    eponymous king of Phoenicia. Ovid depicts her as being carried away
    from Tyre (_Fasti_ v. 605; _Met._ ii. 845).

    [63] _i.e._ the Minotaur.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 178


V. (LXXXVI.)

_Est in conspectu longe locus._

    Est procul ingenti regio summota recessu,
    insula qua resides fluctus mitescere cogit
    in longum producta latus, fractasque per undas
    ardua tranquillo curvantur brachia portu.


VI. (LXXVIII.)

_Rimanti telum ira facit._

    In iaculum, quodcumque gerit, dementia mutat.
    omnibus armatur rabies. pro cuspide ferri
    cuncta volant, dum dextra ferox in vulnera saevit.
    pro telo geritur quidquid suggesserit ira.


VII. (LXXXVII.)

_De quadriga marmorea._

1.

    Quis dedit innumeros uno de marmore vultus?
    surgit in aurigam currus, paribusque lupatis
    unanimi frenantur equi: quos forma diremit,
    materies cognata tenet discrimine nullo.

2.

    Vir redit in currum; ducuntur ab axe iugales;
    ex alio se quisque facit. quae tanta potestas?
    una silex tot membra ligat ductusque per artem
    mons patiens ferri varios mutatur in artus.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 179


V. (LXXXVI.)

_A distant Scene._

There is a place deep buried in a huge bay where an island, stretching
far out into the sea, stills the rough waves to quiet, and steep
cliffs, jutting out into the broken water, curve themselves into a
peaceful harbourage.


VI. (LXXVIII.)[64]

_Anger affords a weapon to him who seeks one._

Whate’er it carries, that rage converts into a weapon. Wrath supplies
all with arms. When an angry man thirsts for blood anything will serve
him for a spear. Fury turns a stick into a cudgel.


VII. (LXXXVII.)

_Statue of a Chariot._

1. Who had the skill to fashion so many figures out of one block
of marble? The chariot melts into the charioteer; the horses with
one common accord obey the same reins. These are distinguishable by
their various forms but made from one and the same material without
distinction.

2. The driver is of one piece with the car: to this are attached the
steeds, each joined to, and proceeding out of, another. How admirable
the artist’s skill! A single block combines within itself all these
bodies: one mass of marble by submitting to the chisel has grown into
all these various shapes.

    [64] See Introduction, p. xviii, note 2.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 180


VIII. (LXIX.)

_De Polycaste et Perdicca._

    Quid non saevus Amor flammarum numine cogat?
      sanguinis en fetum mater amare timet.
    pectore dum niveo miserum tenet anxia nutrix,
      inlicitos ignes iam fovet ipsa parens.
    ultrices pharetras tandem depone, Cupido.                            5
      consule iam Venerem: forsan et ipsa dolet.


IX. (XLV.)

_De hystrice._

      Audieram memorande tuas Stymphale volucres
    spicula vulnifico quondam sparsisse volatu,
    nec mihi credibilis ferratae fabula pinnae
    visa diu. datur ecce fides et cognitus hystrix
    Herculeas adfirmat aves.
                              Os longius illi                            5
    adsimulat porcum. mentitae cornua saetae
    summa fronte rigent. oculis rubet igneus ardor.
    parva sub hirsuto catuli vestigia dorso.
    hanc tamen exiguam miro natura tueri
    praesidio dignata feram: stat corpore toto                          10
    silva minax, iaculisque rigens in proelia crescit
    picturata seges; quorum cute fixa tenaci

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 181


VIII. (LXIX.)

_Of Polycaste and Perdiccas._[65]

To what deeds of cruelty will the flames of love not inspire mankind?
Here is a mother who dares not love her child, the fruit of her body.
Holding the unhappy boy to her snowy breast and wishing to give him
suck, she conceives for him, though she is his mother, a shameful
passion. Cupid, thou goest too far; put down thy cruel quiver. Consult
Venus; mayhap she feels like pangs.


IX. (XLV.)

_The Porcupine._

I had heard the strange tale, Stymphalus, that the birds that haunted
thy marshes let fall from them arrows of death in their flight, and for
long I could not bring myself to believe this story of iron feathers.
But here is proof: the porcupine who is surely related to those birds
of Hercules is their warrant.

His long snout is like that of a swine. Stiff bristles like horns
stand up from his forehead. Red and fierce are his fiery eyes. Under
his bristly back are short legs like those of a small dog. Small as
this animal is, nevertheless Nature has seen fit to dower him with
a wonderful means of defence. All over the body grows a threatening
thicket: a harvest of brightly coloured spears bristles up ready

    [65] Perdiccas, the young hunter, is said to have fallen in love
    with his mother Polycaste (or Polycarpe)=the Earth (see _Mythogr.
    Lat._ ii. 130). Claudian inverts the story. For details see Höfer
    in Roscher’s lexicon, art. “Perdix,” col. 1953.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 182

    alba subit radix, alternantesque colorum
    tincta vices, spatiis internigrantibus, exit
    in solidae speciem pinnae, tenuataque furtim                        15
    levis in extremum sese producit acumen.

    Sed non haec acies ritu silvestris echini
    fixa manet. crebris propugnat iactibus ultro
    et longe sua membra tegit, tortumque per auras
    evolat excusso nativum missile tergo.                               20
    interdum fugiens Parthorum more sequentem
    vulnerat; interdum positis velut ordine castris
    terrificum densa mucronum verberat unda
    et consanguineis hastilibus asperat armos:
    militat omne ferae corpus vibrataque rauco                          25
    terga fragore sonant. stimulis accensa tubarum
    agmina conlatis credas confligere signis:
    tantus in angusto strepitus furit. additur armis
    calliditas parcusque sui tumor iraque numquam
    prodiga telorum, caute contenta minari                              30
    nec nisi servandae iactus impendere vitae.
    error abest: certum sollertia destinat ictum
    nil spatio fallente modum, servatque tenorem
    mota cutis doctique regit conamina nisus.

    Quid labor humanus tantum ratione sagaci                            35
    proficit? eripiunt trucibus Gortynia capris
    cornua; subiectis eadem lentescere cogunt
    ignibus; intendunt taurino viscere nervos;
    instruitur pinnis ferroque armatur harundo.
    ecce brevis propriis munitur bestia telis                           40

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 183

for battle. The roots of these weapons are white and are firmly fixed
in the animal’s skin. The quills are themselves parti-coloured with
black bands and come to a stiff quill-like point, diminishing in
diameter towards the tip which is smooth and sharp.

But his armoury is not fixed like that of the woodland hedgehog. He
can take the offensive and also protect himself at a distance by the
frequent discharge of these darts of his, hurling through the air the
flying missiles which his own back supplies. At times like the flying
Parthian he wounds his pursuers; at times he entrenches himself and
strikes his foe by the discharge of a storm of these terrible weapons
which bristle on his shoulders out of which they grow. He fights with
his whole body, and his back, as it moves, emits a raucous sound. You
would think it was the trumpet’s note stirring an army to close with
the foe and fight. Small is the animal but great the din. Besides his
arms he displays cunning and a cold, calculated fury that never wastes
its weapons but cautiously contents itself with threats, for he never
expends a dart but in defence of his life. His aim is sure; the blow,
such is his skill, unerring, nor can distance delude his range. The
motion of his skin in the act of discharging ensures the speed, and
accurately directs the flight, of the weapon.

Has human endeavour, with reason to guide it, ever done the like?
Men rob of their horns the wild goats of Crete, then they force them
to become pliant over the fire[66]; they use the guts of cattle to
string their bows; they tip their arrows with iron and wing them with
feathers. But here is a small animal whose arms are contained in his
own body

    [66] In the making of bows.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 184

    externam nec quaerit opem; fert omnia secum:
    se pharetra, sese iaculo, sese utitur arcu.
    unum animal cunctas bellorum possidet artes.

    Quodsi omnis nostrae paulatim industria vitae
    fluxit ab exemplis, quidquid procul appetit hostem,
    hinc reor inventum, morem hinc traxisse Cydonas                     46
    bellandi Parthosque retro didicisse ferire
    prima sagittiferae pecudis documenta secutos.


X. (XCII.)

_De birro castoreo._

    Nominis umbra manet veteris; nam dicere birrum,
      si Castor iuret, castoreum nequeo.
    sex emptus solidis! quid sit, iam scire potestis:
      si mihi nulla fides, credite vel pretio.


XI. (XCI.)

_In sepulchrum speciosae._

    Pulchris stare diu Parcarum lege negatur.
      magna repente ruunt; summa cadunt subito.
    hic formosa iacet: Veneris sortita figuram
      egregiumque decus invidiam meruit.


XII. (LXXXIV.)

_De balneis Quintianis quae in via posita erant._

    Fontibus in liquidis paulum requiesce, viator,
      atque tuum rursus carpe refectus iter.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 185

and who needs no external defence. He carries all his own arms; himself
his own quiver, arrow, and bow. Alone he possesses all the resources of
war.

But if all human activities as they grow have had their source in
imitation we may see here the exemplar of combat by means of missiles.
It is from him that the Cretans learned to shoot and the Parthians to
strike while in flight. These did but follow the example of the animal
that is armed with arrows.


X. (XCII.)

_Of Beaver’s Overcoat._[67]

’Tis but the shadow of a name that is left. I cannot call it a coat of
beaver, not though Beaver swear it is one. It cost six shillings. Now
you know what it is like. If you don’t believe me, believe the price.


XI. (XCI.)

_On the Tomb of a Beauty._

Fate allows not beauty a long life: sudden is the end of all that is
noble and pre-eminent. Here lies a lovely woman: hers was the beauty of
Venus and hers the illwill of Heaven for a gift so rare.


XII. (LXXXIV.)

_Quintius’ Baths._

Stay awhile and bathe in these waters, traveller; then set forth again
upon thy journey refreshed.

    [67] Claudian is, I think, punning on _castor_=a beaver, and
    Castor, the name of the owner of the coat. But _castor_ in l. 2
    might be taken to refer either to the god or to the animal.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 186

    lympharum dominum nimium miraberis, hospes,
      inter dura viae balnea qui posuit.


XIII. (LXXIX.)

_In podagrum qui carmina sua non stare dicebat._

    Quae tibi cum pedibus ratio? quid carmina culpas?
      scandere qui nescis, versiculos laceras?
    “claudicat hic versus; haec” inquit “syllaba nutat”;
      atque nihil prorsus stare putat podager


XIV. (LXXXII.)

_Ad Maximum qui ei mel misit._

    Dulcia dona mihi semper tu, Maxime, mittis,
      et, quidquid mittis, mella putare decet.


XV. (LXXXIX.)

_De paupere amante_

    Paupertas me saeva domat dirusque Cupido:
      sed toleranda fames, non tolerandus amor.


XVI. (XC.)

_De eodem._

    Esuriens pauper telis incendor amoris.
      inter utrumque malum deligo pauperiem.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 187

An thou become its guest, warm will be thy gratitude towards him that
built this bath and set it by the side of this long dusty road.


XIII. (LXXIX.)

_To a gouty Critic._

Canst thou talk of feet? Dost blame my verses and criticize my lines,
thou whose own feet are so weak? This couplet, you say, will scarcely
stand: the scansion is shaky. Dear friend, a gouty man thinks nothing
at all can stand.


XIV. (LXXXII.)

_To thank Maximus for a Gift of Honey._

Thou dost ever send me sweet gifts, Maximus; ’tis honey whatsoever thou
sendest, methinks.


XV. (LXXXIX.)

_The Poor Lover._

Biting poverty and cruel Cupid are my foes. Hunger I can endure; love I
cannot.


XVI. (XC.)

_The Same._

A hungry pauper am I, a victim fallen to love. Two ills; but poverty is
the lesser.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 188


XVII. (L.)

_De piis fratribus et de statuis eorum quae sunt apud Catinam._

    Adspice sudantes venerando pondere fratres,
      divino meritos semper honore coli,
    iusta quibus rapidae cessit reverentia flammae
      et mirata vagas reppulit Aetna faces.
    complexi manibus fultos cervice parentes                             5
      attollunt vultus accelerantque gradus.
    grandaevi gemina sublimes prole feruntur
      et cara natos implicuere mora.
    nonne vides, ut saeva senex incendia monstret?
      ut trepido genetrix invocet ore deos?                             10
    erexit formido comam, perque omne metallum
      fusus in attonito palluit aere tremor.
    in iuvenum membris animosus cernitur horror
      atque oneri metuens impavidusque sui.
    reiectae vento chlamydes. dextram exerit ille                       15
      contentus laeva sustinuisse patrem;
    ast illi duplices in nodum colligit ulnas
      cautior in sexu debiliore labor.
    hoc quoque praeteriens oculis ne forte relinquas,
      artificis tacitae quod meruere manus:                             20
    nam consanguineos eadem cum forma figuret,
      hic propior matri fit tamen, ille patri.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 189


XVII. (L.)

_On the Statues of Two Brothers at Catina._[68]

See these two brothers toiling beneath a burden piety bade them bear.
They deserve the tribute of divine honours at the hands of all men: at
the sight of them the respectful flames ceased their ravages and Etna
in admiration restrained his flooding lava. Seizing their parents they
set them upon their shoulders and, with eyes raised to heaven, hasten
their steps. The aged parents, thus carried aloft by their two sons,
impede their flight, but dear to the children is that very delay. See,
the old man points to the cruel flames; the aged mother’s trembling
lips call upon the gods for help. Fear has set their hair on end, the
bronze is terror-stricken and a pale shiver runs over all the metal. In
the countenances of the sons is seen courage in face of danger, and, if
fear, then fear for their burdens, none for themselves. The wind has
blown back their cloaks. One raises his right hand; his left is enough
to sustain his aged sire. But the other needs must clasp his burden
with both arms, taking greater care for that it is his mother, one of
the weaker sex, that he bears. This, too, as thou passest by, leave
not unnoted, for well the craftsman’s dumb hands deserve such regard;
both he has moulded with a likeness such as brothers bear, yet the one
resembles rather his mother, the other his father.

    [68] The story of the _pietas_ of these brothers has often been
    told or referred to: the better known passages are Senec. _De
    benef._ iii. 37. 2; Martial vii. 24. 5; Sil. Ital. xiv. 197.
    Hyginus (_Fab._ 154) gives the story though with different names.
    The brothers’ heads appear both on Sicilian and Roman coins, _e.g._
    Head, _Hist. Num._ 117; _Brit. Mus. Cat._ Sicily 52, Nos. 70-79;
    Babelon, _Monn. de la répub._ i. 539, ii. 353.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 190

    dissimiles annos sollertia temperat artis:
      alter in alterius redditur ore parens,
    et nova germanis paribus discrimina praebens                        25
      divisit vultus cum pietate faber.

    O bene naturae memores, documenta supernae
      iustitiae, iuvenum numina, vota senum:
    qui spretis opibus medios properastis in ignes
      nil praeter sanctam tollere canitiem.                             30
    haud equidem inmerito tanta virtute repressas
      Enceladi fauces obriguisse reor.
    ipse redundantem frenavit Mulciber Aetnam,
      laederet exempli ne monumenta pii.
    senserunt elementa fidem. pater adfuit aether                       35
      terraque maternum sedula iuvit onus.
    quodsi notus amor provexit in astra Laconas,
      Aenean Phrygio raptus ab igne pater,
    si vetus Argolicos inlustrat gloria fratres,
      qui sua materno colla dedere iugo:                                40
    cur non Amphinomo, cur non tibi, fortis Anapi,
      aeternum Siculus templa dicavit honos?
    plura licet summae dederit Trinacria laudi,
      noverit hoc maius se genuisse nihil;
    nec doleat damnis, quae devius intulit ardor,                       45
      nec gemat exustas igne furente domos.
    non potuit pietas flamma cessante probari:
      emptum est ingenti clade perenne decus.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 191

The artist’s cunning has succeeded in expressing a difference of age
in their faces, though a likeness to either parent is apparent in the
features of both the sons; while, to ensure a further dissimilarity in
that resemblance, he has varied the tenderness that either countenance
expresses.

Faithful were ye to Nature’s law, bright example of divine justice,
model for youth, fond hope of age! Wealth ye despised, and dashed
into the flames to rescue nought save your venerable parents. Not
undeservedly, methinks, did such piety quench the fires in Enceladus’
jaws. Vulcan himself checked the flow of molten lava from Etna that
it should not harm those patterns of filial duty. The very elements
were influenced thereby: father air and mother earth did their best to
lighten the burden.

If signal piety raised Castor and Pollux to the skies, if Aeneas won
immortality by rescuing his sire from burning Troy, if ancient story
has rendered famous the names of those Argive brothers, Cleobis and
Biton,[69] who harnessed themselves to their mother’s car, why does
not Sicily dedicate a temple to the ageless memory of Amphinomos and
Anapius? Though the three-cornered isle has many titles to fame, let
her be sure that she has never given birth to a nobler deed. Let her
not weep the destruction wrought by the spreading flames nor lament the
houses burned down by the fire’s fury. The flames abating had never put
affection to the proof; the great disaster purchased immortal fame.

    [69] Herodotus tells their story in book i. 31.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 192


XVIII. (LI.)

_De mulabus Gallicis._

    Adspice morigeras Rhodani torrentis alumnas
      imperio nexas imperioque vagas,
    dissona quam varios flectant ad murmura cursus
      et certas adeant voce regente vias.
    quamvis quaeque sibi nullis discurrat habenis                        5
      et pateant duro libera colla iugo,
    ceu constricta tamen servit patiensque laborum
      barbaricos docili concipit aure sonos.
    absentis longinqua valent praecepta magistri,
      frenorumque vicem lingua virilis agit.                            10
    haec procul angustat sparsas spargitque coactas:
      haec sistit rapidas, haec properare facit.
    laeva iubet: laevo deducunt limite gressum.
      mutavit strepitum: dexteriora petunt.
    nec vinclis famulae nec libertate feroces,                          15
      exutae laqueis, sub dicione tamen
    consensuque pares et fulvis pellibus hirtae
      esseda concordes multisonora trahunt.
    miraris, si voce feras pacaverit Orpheus,
      cum pronas pecudes Gallica verba regant?                          20


XIX. (XLIII.)

_Epistula ad Gennadium exproconsule._

    Italiae commune decus, Rubiconis amoeni
      incola, Romani fama secunda fori,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 193


XVIII. (LI.)

_Of French Mules._

Behold the docile children of fast-flowing Rhone that at their master’s
word come together and at that word disperse. See how they go this way
or that according to the different cries he utters, and, guided only by
his voice, take the path he would have them take. Though each unguided
by the rein takes his own course and no collar presses upon their necks
they obey as though harnessed and, insensible to fatigue, hear and
follow the directions shouted by their barbarous master. Though far
away from their owner they nevertheless respect his commands, obeying
the word of the muleteer as it were a bridle. It is his voice that even
at a distance gathers them together when scattered or scatters them
when gathered together; this that checks their haste or quickens their
dragging steps. Does he shout “left,” they turn them to the left: does
he alter his cry to “right,” to the right they go. Slaves, yet without
bonds, free, but without licence, they go unbridled but obedient.
Covered with tawny pelts they haul along the rumbling carts, each
cheerfully doing his fair share. Dost thou wonder that Orpheus tamed
the wild beasts with his song when the words of a Gaul can guide these
swift-footed mules?


XIX. (XLIII.)

_Letter to Gennadius,[70] ex-Proconsul._

Glory of all Italy, who dwellest on the pleasant banks of Rubicon,
ornament of the Roman bar

    [70] Gennadius was by birth a Syrian (Synesius, _Ep._ 30); prefect
    of Egypt in 396 (_Cod. Theod._ xiv. 27. 1). He seems to have lived
    at Ravenna (_Rubiconis incola_). Birt (praef. p. xviii) thinks that
    line 2 refers to Symmachus, Gennadius’ contemporary, not to Cicero.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 194

    Graiorum populis et nostro cognite Nilo
      (utraque gens fasces horret amatque tuos):
    carmina ieiunas poscis solantia fauces?                              5
      testor amicitiam nulla fuisse domi.
    nam mihi mox nidum pennis confisa relinquunt
      et lare contempto non reditura volant.


XX. (LII.)

_De sene Veronensi qui Suburbium numquam egressus est._

    Felix, qui propriis aevum transegit in arvis,
      ipsa domus puerum quem videt, ipsa senem;
    qui baculo nitens in qua reptavit harena
      unius numerat saecula longa casae.
    illum non vario traxit fortuna tumultu,                              5
      nec bibit ignotas mobilis hospes aquas.
    non freta mercator tremuit, non classica miles,
      non rauci lites pertulit ille fori.
    indocilis rerum, vicinae nescius urbis
      adspectu fruitur liberiore poli.                                  10
    frugibus alternis, non consule computat annum:
      autumnum pomis, ver sibi flore notat.
    idem condit ager soles idemque reducit,
      metiturque suo rusticus orbe diem,
    ingentem meminit parvo qui germine quercum                          15
      aequaevumque videt consenuisse nemus,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 195

second only to Cicero, well known to the peoples of Greece and to
Egypt, land of my birth (for both have feared and loved thy rule), dost
thou ask for poems to appease thy hungry throat?

By our friendship, I swear there are none at home. My verses soon learn
to trust to their own wings and leave the nest, flying far afield nor
ever returning to their humble home.


XX. (LII.)

_Of an old Man of Verona who never left his home._

Happy he who has passed his whole life mid his own fields, he of whose
birth and old age the same house is witness; he whose stick supports
his tottering steps o’er the very ground whereon he crawled as a baby
and whose memory knows but of one cottage as the scene where so long a
life was played out. No turns of fortune vexed him with their sudden
storms;[71] he never travelled nor drank the waters of unknown rivers.
He was never a trader to fear the seas nor a soldier to dread the
trumpet’s call; never did he face the noisy wrangles of the courts.
Unpractised in affairs, unfamiliar with the neighbouring town, he finds
his delight in a freer view of the sky above him. For him the recurring
seasons, not the consuls, mark the year: he knows autumn by his fruits
and spring by her flowers. From the selfsame fields he watches the sun
rise and set, and, at his work, measures the day with his own round of
toils. He remembers yon mighty oak an acorn, and sees the plantation,
set when he was born, grown old along

    [71] This proves the poem to have been written before the Gothic
    irruption of 401. Abraham Cowley translated this poem (_Essays and
    Plays, etc._, Camb. Press, 1906, p. 447).

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 196

    proxima cui nigris Verona remotior Indis
      Benacumque putat litora Rubra lacum.
    sed tamen indomitae vires firmisque lacertis
      aetas robustum tertia cernit avum.                                20
    erret et extremos alter scrutetur Hiberos:
      plus habet hic vitae, plus habet ille viae.


XXI. (LXXX.)

_De Theodoro et Hadriano._

    Manlius indulget somno noctesque diesque;
      insomnis Pharius sacra profana rapit.
    omnibus hoc, Italae gentes, exposcite votis,
      Manlius ut vigilet, dormiat ut Pharius.


XXII. (XXXIX.)

_Deprecatio ad Hadrianum._

    Usque adeone tuae producitur impetus irae?
      nullus erit finis lacrimis? subitisque favorem
    permutas odiis? quo mens ignara nocendi,
      quo sensus abiere pii? tantumne licebit
    invidiae? tantum strepitus valuere maligni?                          5

      Me dolor incautus, me lubrica duxerit aetas,
    me tumor impulerit, me devius egerit ardor:
    te tamen haud decuit paribus concurrere telis.
    humanae superos numquam tetigere querellae
    nec vaga securum penetrant convicia caelum.                         10

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 197

with him. Neighbouring Verona is, for him, more distant than
sun-scorched India; Benacus he accounts as the Red Sea. But his
strength is unimpaired and the third generation see in him a sturdy,
stout-armed grandsire. Let who will be a wanderer and explore farthest
Spain: such may have more of a journey; he of Verona has more of a
life.[72]


XXI. (LXXX.)

_Of Theodore and Hadrian._[73]

Manlius Theodorus sleeps night and day; the sleepless Egyptian
steals alike from gods and men. Peoples of Italy, be this your one
prayer--that Manlius keep awake and the Egyptian sleep.


XXII. (XXXIX.)

_Apology to Hadrian._

Must the violence of thine anger last so long? Are my tears never to
cease to flow? Dost thou thus suddenly turn thy favour to hatred?
Where, then, is that leniency that knows not to harm any, that
loving-kindness? Shall envy have such licence? Has the clamour of
calumny so prevailed?

What though rash wrath, though heedless youth tempted me, though pride
urged, though passion led me astray, yet shouldst _thou_ be above
meeting me with like weapons. Human murmurs never touch the gods nor do
the loose railings of man disturb the peace of heaven. My punishment has

    [72] Claudian plays on the words _vitae_ and _viae_.

    [73] For M. see xvi. and note (and Introduction, p. xv). H.
    was _comes sacrarum largitionum_ in the East in 395, _magister
    officiorum_ in 397, praetorian prefect of Italy 401. This epigram
    was probably written in 396: the apology (next poem) perhaps the
    same year.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 198

    excessit iam poena modum. concede iacenti.
    en adsum; veniam confessus crimina posco.

    Manibus Hectoreis atrox ignovit Achilles.
    ultrices Furias matris placavit Orestes.
    reddidit Alcides Priamo, quas ceperat, arces.                       15
    Pellaeum iuvenem regum flexere ruinae:
    Darium famulis manibus doluisse peremptum
    fertur et ingenti solatus fata sepulchro;
    tradita captivo spatiosior India Poro.
    conditor hic patriae; sic hostibus ille pepercit;                   20
    hunc virtus tua digna sequi. quemcumque deorum
    laesimus, insultet iugulo pascatque furorem.

    Gratia defluxit, sequitur feralis egestas;
    desolata domus, caris spoliamur amicis:
    hunc tormenta necant, hic undique truditur exul.                    25
    quid superest damnis? quae saeva pericula restant?

    Emollit rabiem praedae mortisque facultas.
    praetereunt subiecta ferae, torvique leones,
    quae stravisse calent, eadem prostrata relinquunt
    nec nisi bellantis gaudent cervice iuvenci                          30
    nobiliore fame. secuit nascentia vota
    livor et ingesto turbavit gaudia luctu:
    iamiam suppliciis fessos humilesque serenus
    respice. quid tanta dignaris mole clientem?
    in brevibus numquam sese probat Aeolus undis,                       35
    nec capit angustus Boreae certamina collis:
    Alpes ille quatit, Rhodopeia culmina lassat.
    incubuit numquam caelestis flamma salictis

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 199

been too severe; spare a fallen foe. Behold me; I confess my faults and
ask pardon for my sin.

Fierce Achilles showed mercy to the shade of Hector, Orestes appeased
his mother’s avenging furies, Hercules restored to Priam the cities
which he had taken. A king’s overthrow won the pity of Pella’s youthful
monarch, who wept, men say, for the death of Darius at a slave’s
hand, and consoled his ghost with a lofty mausoleum. To captive Porus
Alexander gave back an ampler kingdom. ’Twas thus the founder of our
country[74] spared his conquered foes. Thine own nobility demands that
thou shouldst follow his example. If it is one of the gods that I have
insulted let him send down punishment upon me and sate his anger.

Now that I have lost thy favour I am become a prey to grinding poverty,
my house is desolate, my friends reft from me. Death with torture is
the fate of one, exile of another. What further losses can I suffer?
What more cruel plagues can befall me?

The power to despoil and kill softens anger. Wild beasts turn away from
their stricken prey, and fierce lions, eager to destroy, abandon the
dead victim, and with a nobler hunger riot only in the flesh of the
warlike steer. Envy has snapped the thread of my prosperity and turned
my happiness into mourning. I am fordone with punishment and my pride
is broken; look on me again with favour. Is a humble client worth so
heavy a weight of anger? Aeolus makes not trial of himself where the
sea’s waters are shallow; no lowly hill encounters Boreas’ blasts; ’tis
the Alps he shakes, the summit of Rhodope he harasses. Never doth the
lightning

    [74] Alexander is called the founder of Claudian’s country (Egypt)
    because the first Ptolemy was one of his generals and became king
    of Egypt on Alexander’s death.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 200

    nec parvi frutices iram meruere Tonantis:
    ingentes quercus, annosas fulminat ornos.                           40

    Hoc pro supplicibus ramis, pro fronde Minervae,
    hoc carmen pro ture damus. miserere tuorum.
    me, precor, heu, me redde mihi gravibusque medere
    vulneribus vitamque iube famamque reverti.
    quae per te cecidit, per te fortuna resurgat.                       45
    sanus Achilleis remeavit Telephus herbis,
    cuius pertulerat vires, et sensit in uno
    letalem placidamque manum; medicina per hostem
    contigit, et pepulit quos fecerat ipse dolores.

    Quodsi nec precibus fletu nec flecteris ullo,                       50
    eripe calcatis non prospera cingula Musis,
    eripe militiam, comitem me pelle sodalis.[75]
    scilicet insignis de paupere vate triumphus.
    scilicet egregiis ornabere victor opimis.
    inruat in miseros cognata potentia cives;                           55
    audiat haec commune solum longeque carinis
    nota Pharos, flentemque attollens gurgite vultum
    nostra gemat Nilus numerosis funera ripis.


XXIII. (LXXIV.)

_Deprecatio in Alethium quaestorem._

    Sic non Aethiopum campos aestate pererrem
      nec Scythieo brumam sub Iove nudus agam,

    [75] Birt _sodali_ (EV AJ); _sodalis_ R.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 201

strike the humble willows nor do the modest shrubs deserve the
Thunder’s angry bolt; lofty oaks and agèd elms are his victims.

Instead of the suppliant’s branch plucked from Minerva’s sacred olive,
instead of incense, I offer thee this poem. Have mercy on thy servant.
Restore me, even me, to my former state, heal my cruel wounds, bid life
and honour return to me. Do thou, who didst overthrow my fortune, build
it up again. Telephus came back cured by the magic of Achilles.[76] The
same hand dealt death and healing--an enemy restoring him to health by
the assuagement of the very pains he had inflicted.

But if neither my prayers nor my tears can soften thee, spurn the Muses
with thy foot and take away my unlucky decorations, deprive me of my
rank, cast me aside who was once thy companion. A noteworthy victory
this thou hast won over a poor poet; redoubtable indeed the spoils that
will grace such a triumph. Let a fellow-countryman’s power overwhelm
his wretched fellows.[77] Be my fate told to our common fatherland and
to Pharos, known of all who sail the distant seas, and let Father Nile
raise his weeping head from out the flood and mourn my cruel case along
the banks of all his seven mouths.


XXIII. (LXXIV.)

_Apology to Alethius, the Quaestor._[78]

As I hope never to cross the plains of Ethiopia beneath a summer sun,
never to pass a winter naked

    [76] Telephus, wounded by Achilles’ spear, could only be cured by
    his “wounder.” In return for such information about Troy as should
    lead to its capture, Achilles cured Telephus by means of the rust
    on the spear that had inflicted the wound.

    _Herbis_ must here mean simply magic (_cf._ Prop. iv. 7. 72), but
    it is curious, and _hasta_ (_e_) is tempting.

    [77] Both Hadrian and Claudian were Egyptians.

    [78] Nothing is known about this Alethius.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 202

    sic non imbriferam noctem ducentibus Haedis
      Ionio credam turgida vela mari,
    sic non Tartareo Furiarum verbere pulsus                             5
      irati relegam carmina grammatici:
    nulla meos traxit petulans audacia sensus,
      liberior iusto nec mihi lingua fuit.
    versiculos, fateor, non cauta voce notavi,
      heu miser! ignorans, quam grave crimen erat.                      10
    Orpheos alii libros impune lacessunt
      nec tua securum te, Maro, fama vehit;
    ipse parens vatum, princeps Heliconis, Homerus
      iudicis excepit tela severa notae.
    sed non Vergilius, sed non accusat Homerus:                         15
      neuter enim quaestor, pauper uterque fuit.
    en moveo plausus! en pallidus omnia laudo
      et clarum repeto terque quaterque “sophos”!
    ignoscat placidus tandem flatusque remittat
      et tuto recitet quod libet ore: placet.                           20


XXIV. (LXXXIII.)

_De lucusta._

    Horret apex capitis; medio fera lumina surgunt
    vertice; cognatus dorso durescit amictus.
    armavit natura cutem dumique rubentes
    cuspidibus parvis multos acuere rubores.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 203

beneath the northern pole, never to entrust my bellying sails to the
Ionian Sea what time the Kids bring round the rainy nights, never,
driven by the Furies’ hellish blows, to re-read the verses of an angry
pedant,[79] ’twas not, I swear, impudent effrontery that moved me, nor
did my tongue exceed a just outspokenness. I admit I incautiously found
fault with a few lines, not realizing, luckless wight, the heinousness
of my offence. Others attack the books of Orpheus and nothing is said;
nor does thy fame, Maro, support thee in safety. The very father of
poetry, Homer, lord of Helicon, knew the stigma of the censor’s pen.
Yet neither Vergil nor Homer complains, for neither was a quaestor and
both were poor. See, then, I applaud! See, in terror I praise every
word and loudly cry again and again “bravo!” Let him be appeased and
pardon at last, let him cease from wrath--and with secure voice recite
whate’er he will; I applaud.


XXIV. (LXXXIII.)

_The Lobster._

Long horns project from his head; fierce eyes stand out from his
forehead; his back is protected by the armour of his self-grown shell.
Nature herself has rendered his skin a sufficient defence, covering it
with small, red, pointed spikes.

    [79] The “pedant” is doubtless Alethius himself and the “verses”
    the very poem which Claudian has already read once and criticized
    unfavourably.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 204


XXV. (XXX., XXXI.)

_Epithalamium dictum Palladio V. C. tribuno et notario et Celerinae._

PRAEFATIO

    Carmina per thalamum quamvis festina negare
      nec volui genero nec potui socero.
    hic socius, dux ille mihi nostrique per aulam
      ordinis hic consors emicat, ille prior.
    hunc mihi coniungit studiis communibus aetas;                        5
      hunc mihi praeponit vel senium vel honos.
    carmen amor generi, soceri reverentia poscit
      officio vatis, militis obsequio.

    Forte Venus blando quaesitum frigore somnum
    vitibus intexti gremio successerat antri
    densaque sidereos per gramina fuderat artus
    adclinis florum cumulo; crispatur opaca
    pampinus et musto sudantem ventilat uvam.                            5
    ora decet neglecta sopor; fastidit amictum
    aestus et exuto translucent pectore frondes.
    Idaliae iuxta famulae triplexque vicissim
    nexa sub ingenti requiescit Gratia quercu.
    pennati passim pueri quo quemque vocavit                            10
    umbra iacent; fluitant arcus ramisque propinquis
    pendentes placido suspirant igne pharetrae.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 205


XXV (XXX, XXXI)

_Epithalamium of Palladius and Celerina._[80]

PREFACE

Asked to improvise a song in honour of a marriage I find myself
unwilling to refuse the bridegroom and unable to say no to his
father-in-law. The former was my comrade-in-arms, the latter my
general; at court the first is of equal rank with me, the second my
superior. Similarity of age and pursuits made me a friend of Palladius;
age and dignity set Celerinus far above me. The love I bear the one
demands my good offices as a poet, the awe in which I hold the other a
soldier’s obedience: I must sing.

It chanced that Venus had one day retired into the bosom of a cave
overgrown with vine to woo sleep mid its alluring cool, and had laid
her goddess limbs on the thick grass, her head upon a heap of flowers.
The vine branches stir gently in the breeze and sway the full-veined
grapes. Slumber befits the disorder of her brow, the midday heat will
none of coverings, and the leaves show through them the gleam of her
bare breast. Round her lie the nymphs of Ida and hard by beneath a
lofty oak-tree the three Graces sleep with interlaced arms. Here
and there, where’er the shade invites them, repose winged Cupids.
Their bows are unstrung and their quivers hang from the branches of
neighbouring trees, instinct with latent fire. Some

    [80] This poem and the marriage it celebrates probably belong to
    the year 399. We know little of P. save that he was the friend and
    colleague (_tribunus et notarius, cf._ Introduction, p. xii) of
    Claudian. His father (l. 61) was probably prefect of Egypt in 382
    (_Cod. Theod._ viii. 5. 37). Celerina’s grandfather held the same
    post (l. 73); her father (ll. 82 _et sqq._)--the _socer_ of line 2
    of the preface--was _primicerius notariorum_ (so Godefroy on _Cod.
    Theod._ vi. 2).

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 206

    pars vigiles ludunt aut per virgulta vagantes
    scrutantur nidos avium vel roscida laeti
    mala legunt donum Veneri flexusque sequuntur                        15
    palmitis et summas pennis librantur in ulmos;
    defendunt alii lucum Dryadasque procaces
    spectandi cupidas et rustica numina pellunt
    silvestresque deos longeque tuentibus antrum
    flammea lascivis intendunt spicula Faunis:                          20
    cum subito varius vicina clamor ab urbe
    et fausti iuvenum plausus mixtaeque choreis
    auditae per rura lyrae. Celerina per omnes
    Italiae canitur montes omnisque maritum
    Palladium resonabat ager.
                            Pervenit ad aures                           25
    vox iucunda deae strepituque excita resedit
    et reliquum nitido detersit pollice somnum
    utque fuit, turbata comas, intecta papillas,
    mollibus exurgit stratis interque suorum
    agmen et innumeros Hymenaeum quaerit Amores                         30
    (hunc Musa genitum legit Cytherea ducemque
    praefecit thalamis; nullum iunxisse cubile
    hoc sine nec primas fas est attollere taedas).
    conspicitur tandem. platano namque ille sub alta
    fusus inaequales cera texebat avenas                                35
    Maenaliosque modos et pastoralia labris
    murmura temptabat relegens orisque recursu
    dissimilem tenui variabat harundine ventum.
      Restitit ut vidit Venerem, digitisque remissis
    ad terram tacito defluxit fistula flatu.                            40

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 207

wake and play or wander through the thickets in search of birds’ nests
or take delight in plucking dewy apples as a gift for Venus or hunt the
gadding vine for grapes, and, poised on their wings, climb its branches
to the very tops of the elm-trees. Others keep guard over the wood and
drive off the wanton, curious Dryads, the country gods and the woodland
deities, discharging flaming darts at the amorous Fauns who try from
a distance to catch a glimpse of Venus’ bower. Suddenly there arose
cries and shoutings from the neighbouring city; joyous acclamations of
youth and the strains of the lyre accompanying dancing in the streets.
Through all the hills of Italy the name of Celerina is chanted and
every field re-echoes that of her husband Palladius.

The pleasant sound reached the goddess’ ears; aroused by the noise
she sat up and with her fair hands rubbed from her eyes the residue
of sleep; then, just as she was, her hair disordered, her breasts
uncovered, she leapt from her soft couch and summoned Hymen from among
the unnumbered Loves that formed her bodyguard. (Him, son of the Muse,
Cytherea chose out and made the patron god of marriage. Without his
sanction is no entry into wedlock nor is it lawful but with his leave
to uplift the first wedding-torches.) At last he is found. There he lay
stretched beneath a tall plane-tree joining with wax pipes of unequal
length, seeking to repeat with his lips Maenalian measures and pastoral
tunes, while, as his mouth ran over them, he varied his breathing upon
the slender reed.

Seeing Venus he stopped; noiseless to the ground from out the nerveless
grasp of his fingers fell the

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 208

    dulce micant oculi; niveas infecerat igni
    solque pudorque genas; dubiam lanuginis umbram
    caesaries intonsa tegit. prior ipsa silentem
    compellat:
                            “Numquamne, puer, dilecta relinques
    carmina? maternis numquam satiabere donis                           45
    dedite Musarum studio nimiumque parentis
    aemule? quid medio tecum modularis in aestu?
    iamne tibi sordent citharae? iam lustra Lycaei
    atque pecus cordi redituraque rupibus Echo?
    huc ades et tantae nobis edissere causas                            50
    laetitiae, cui pompa toro tam clara resultet,
    quae nova dotetur virgo: patriamque genusque
    pande, quibus terris orti, quo semine ducti.
    haud ignarus enim, nec te conubia fallunt
    ulla; tuo primae libantur[81] foedere noctes.”                      55

    Ille refert: “equidem dudum te, diva, morantem
    mirabar, quod adhuc tanti secura maneres
    coniugii. non parva tibi mandatur origo.
    fascibus insignes et legum culmine fultae
    convenere domus et qui lectissimus orbi                             60
    sanguis erat. rubris quae fluctibus insula latrat,
    qui locus Aethiopum, quae sic impervia famae
    secessit regio, quo non rumore secundo
    Palladii penetravit amor mentisque benigna
    temperies doctique sales et grata senectus?                         65

    [81] Birt _librantur_ (MSS.); Delphin ed. _libantur_.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 209

pipe. Affection lights up his eyes; a modest blush suffuses those
sun-browned cheeks so snowy-white by nature, clothed, too, with the
scarce seen down of youth where ceased the ne’er cut hair. Silent he
stood and the goddess first addressed him. “Wilt thou, boy, never leave
thy beloved song? Wilt thou never have enough of thy mother’s gifts,
ever devoted to the Muses’ task and too eager to rival thy parent[82]?
What is it thou dost practise all alone in the midday heat? Dost thou
now despise the lyre and seekest thou rather the woods of Lycaeus and
the herds and Echo resounding from the rocks? Come hither and tell me
the reason for this general rejoicing. What marriage is this that is
attended with such ceremony and such demonstrations of joy? Who is the
newly dowered bride? Of what country, what race are they that are wed?
Tell me from what land they spring and what their parentage. Needs must
thou know, for no marriage can take place without thee and by covenant
with thee are wedlock’s joys first tasted.”

He replied: “Long have I been wondering, goddess, at thy delay, and
marvelled that thou didst take no notice of so world-famed an union.
They are no common folk that now submit them to thy laws. Two families
are united illustrious with consulships, upheld by the highest offices,
in whose veins flows the noblest blood of all the world. What island on
whose coasts thunder the waves of the Red Sea, what tract of Ethiopia,
what land so far withdrawn from human intercourse but has heard the
blessings that the affection of his country calls down on the head of
Palladius’ sire for his clemency, his learning, his wit, his genial
age? He has trodden

    [82] _i.e._ Calliope. Venus is in effect saying to him: attend to
    your own business, play your own instrument (the _cithara_ )and do
    not seek the haunts, and imitate the pipes, of Pan.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 210

    per cunctos iit ille gradus aulaeque labores
    emensus tenuit summae fastigia sedis
    Eoum stabili moderatus iure senatum.
    hic splendor iuveni. cunabula prima puellae
    Danuvius veteresque Tomi. Mavortia matris                           70
    nobilitas spoliis armisque exultat avitis
    inmensamque trahit Celerini robore lucem,
    qui quondam Meroën iussus Nilumque tueri,
    cum sibi post obitus et Parthica fulmina Cari[83]
    sceptra daret miles rebusque imponere vellet,                       75
    despexit fremitus et praetulit otia regno;
    respuit ingestum, quod vi, quod poscere ferro
    posthabita pietate solent. tum purpura primum
    inferior virtute fuit meruitque repulsam
    obvia maiestas. doluit Fortuna minorem                              80
    se confessa viro. magnum delata potestas,
    maiorem contempta probat.
                            “Cognomina sumpsit
    plena ducum genitor. paulatim vectus ad altum
    princeps militiae, qua non inlustrior extat
    altera, cunctorum tabulas adsignat honorum,                         85
    regnorum tractat numeros, constringit in unum
    sparsas imperii vires cuneosque recenset
    dispositos: quae Sarmaticis custodia ripis,
    quae saevis obiecta Getis, quae Saxona frenat
    vel Scottum legio, quantae cinxere cohortes                         90
    Oceanum, quanto pacatur milite Rhenus.

    [83] Birt _caro_ (the reading of E and V); _Cari_ Heinsius.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 211

every rung of the ladder of honours, has held every place at court,
and reached the highest of all offices, directing the deliberations of
the senate of the East with a sure authority. Such is the bridegroom’s
brilliance. The bride first saw the light in the old city of Tomi by
the mouth of the Danube. She is descended on her mother’s side from
noble ancestors famed in war and enriched by war’s spoils and derives
especial glory from the renown of that stalwart Celerinus who, when
appointed to the defence of Meroë and the Nile, and, after the death by
lightning of Carus[84] in Parthia, offered the throne and dominion of
the world by his soldiers, paid no heed to their clamour and preferred
repose to an empire. Of his own will he refused when it was offered
that which men will use every sort of violence and outrage every sort
of right to acquire. For the first time virtue was reckoned above a
throne and sovereignty, making offer of herself, met with a refusal.
Sadly did Fortune confess herself beaten by a mortal. Great it is to
deserve high office, still greater to have despised it.

“Celerina’s father has won every title that a warrior may. Step by step
he has reached the highest of all ranks, that of commander-in-chief;
it is he who dispenses titles of honour, settles the garrisons of the
provinces, unites the scattered forces of the empire, and checks the
disposition of its troops. He decides the defences of Sarmatia and
the legions that are to face the wild Getae or keep Saxon and Scot in
subjection. He knows how many cohorts fringe the shore of Ocean, how
great an army maintains peace along the banks of the Rhine. In the
family of Celerina is to be found unspotted

    [84] Carus was struck by lightning (or murdered) during his Persian
    campaign, A.D. 283; (_cf._ Sidon. Apol. c. 23. 91).

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 212

    casta domus, sincera fides, industria sollers.
    elegit Stilicho; nihil ultra laudibus addi
    iudiciove potest. tali nubente puella
    nonne tibi cessare nefas? duc protinus omnes,                       95
    duc age. marcentes cupio quassare coronas
    et vibrare faces et noctem ducere ludo.
    haec quoque non vilem iam fistula commodat usum
    responsura choris.”
                            Vix haec Hymenaeus; at illa
    fontibus abluitur gelidis legemque capillo                         100
    reddit et ornatum formae prelisque solutae
    mira Dioneae sumit velamina telae.
    floribus extruitur currus; iuga floribus halant;
    florea purpureas adnectunt frena columbas.
    undique concurrunt volucres, quaecumque frementem
    permulcent Athesin cantu, quas Larius audit,                       106
    quas Benacus alit, quas excipit amne quieto
    Mincius: ereptis obmutuit unda querellis.
    Eridani ripas et raucae stagna Padusae
    diffugiens nudavit olor. laetantur Amores                          110
    frenatisque truces avibus per nubila vecti
    ostentant se quisque deae magnoque tumultu
    confligunt pronique manus in verbera tendunt
    atque impune cadunt: lapsus meliore volatu
    consequitur vincitque suos auriga iugales.                         115
      Ut thalami tetigere fores, tum vere rubentes
    desuper invertunt calathos largosque rosarum
    imbres et violas plenis sparsere pharetris
    collectas Veneris prato, quibus ipse pepercit

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 213

virtue, unfeigned loyalty, and diligence guided by knowledge. She
is Stilicho’s choice; to such choice and judgement no praise can be
added. It were a shame, Venus, shouldst thou not be present at the
marriage of such a maid. Come, bring all thy train. Fain would I shake
the withering wreaths, brandish the torches, and devote the night to
pleasure. Now even this my pipe gives no dishonoured service answering
the choirs’ songs.”

Scarce had Hymen spoken and she bathes her in the cool stream, gathers
her flowing hair, and renews her charms, taking from out the press the
wondrous garments spun by her mother Dione. Her chariot is heaped with
flowers and the yoke thereof is fragrant with blossoms. Flowers entwine
the reins that fetter her bright doves. From all sides the birds flock
together, those that soothe with their song the roar of Athesis, those
whom Larius hears, Benacus feeds, or Mincius welcomes with his quiet
flood. Quiet are those waters now that the birds’ plaintive notes
resound there no more. The swans have flown away and left the banks
of Eridanus and the sounding marshes of Padusa. Right glad are the
wanton Loves; they catch and harness the birds and ride them through
the clouds before the eyes of Venus. There they join in noisy battle,
lean forward to strike one another, and fall but suffer no hurt. Fallen
they overtake their steeds with flight swifter than theirs, for the
charioteer is fleeter than the chariot.

Soon as they reached the doors of the marriage-chamber they empty
baskets full of red spring flowers, pouring forth showers of roses and
scattering from their laden quivers violets gathered in Venus’ meadow,
violets untouched e’en by the heat of the

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 214

    Sirius et teneras clementi sidere fovit.                           120
    gemmatis alii per totum balsama tectum
    effudere cadis, duro quae saucius ungue
    Niliacus pingui desudat vulnere cortex.
    adgreditur Cytherea nurum flentemque pudico
    detraxit matris gremio. matura tumescit                            125
    virginitas superatque nives ac lilia candor
    et patrium flavis testatur crinibus Histrum.
    tum dextram complexa viri dextramque puellae
    tradit et his ultro sancit conubia dictis:

    “Vivite concordes et nostrum discite munus.                        130
    oscula mille sonent; livescant brachia nexu;
    labra ligent animas. neu tu virtute proterva
    confidas, iuvenis; non est terrore domanda,
    sed precibus placanda tibi. concede marito
    tu quoque neu Scythicas infensis unguibus iras                     135
    exercere velis: vinci patiare, rogamus.
    sic uxor, sic mater eris. quid lumina tinguis,
    virgo? crede mihi: quem nunc horrescis, amabis.”
      Dixit et aligera geminos arcuque manuque
    praestantes e plebe vocat. puer ilicet Aethon                      140
    et Pyrois rutilas respersi murice plumas
    prosiliunt puroque imbutis melle sagittis
    hic nuptam petit, ille virum. sonuere reducta
    cornua; certa notos pariter sulcavit harundo
    et pariter fixis haeserunt tela medullis.                          145

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 215

Dog-star who had tempered for their frail beauty his accustomed
fires. Others throughout the palace poured forth from jewelled
caskets unguents gathered by the banks of the Nile from trees whose
bark, when wounded by the cruel finger-nail, oozed with rich gum.
Cytherea approaches the bride, and, despite her tears, drew her from
her mother’s arms. Her swelling breast betokens maidenhood ripe for
marriage, her skin is whiter than lilies or than snow, and her golden
hair points to the Danube as her birthplace. Then, taking the hand of
the bridegroom, Venus joins to it that of the bride and with these
words blesses their union: “Live as one and fulfil all my rites. Give
a thousand kisses, let arm be bruised with enfolding arm, and lips so
join that soul may meet soul. And thou, husband, put not thy confidence
in rude love-making; thy wife’s love cannot be won by threats, but
must be gained by entreaty. And do thou yield to thy husband nor seek
to show anger; use not thy nails as weapons like the women of Scythia.
I beg thee submit to conquest; so shalt thou be indeed a wife, so a
mother. Why are there tears in thine eyes? Believe me, thou shalt love
him whom now thou fearest.”

So spake she, and chose from out her winged attendants the two whose
bows were strongest and their aim most sure. At once Aethon and Pyrois
leaped forward, their bright wings tinged with purple. Dipping their
shafts in pure honey the one aims his at the bride, the other his at
the bridegroom. They draw their bows; the strings twang and the sure
arrows cleave the air with equal speed and implant themselves at equal
depths in the hearts of the twain.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 216


XXVI. (XLIX.)

_Aponus._

    Fons, Antenoreae vitam qui porrigis urbi
      fataque vicinis noxia pellis aquis,
    cum tua vel mutis tribuant miracula vocem,
      cum tibi plebeius carmina dictet honos
    et sit nulla manus, cuius non pollice ductae                         5
      testentur memores prospera vota notae:
    nonne reus Musis pariter Nymphisque tenebor,
      si tacitus soli praetereare mihi?
    ludibrium quid enim fas est a vate relinqui
      hunc qui tot populis pervolat ora locum?                          10

    Alto colle minor, planis erectior arvis
      conspicuo clivus molliter orbe tumet
    ardentis fecundus aquae; quacumque cavernas
      perforat, offenso truditur igne latex.
    spirat putre solum, conclusaque subter anhelo                       15
      pumice rimosas perfodit[85] unda vias.
    umida flammarum regio: Vulcania terrae
      ubera, sulphureae fervida regna plagae.
    quis sterilem non credat humum? fumantia vernant
      pascua; luxuriat gramine cocta silex                              20
    et, cum sic rigidae cautes fervore liquescant,
      contemptis audax ignibus herba viret.

    Praeterea grandes effosso marmore sulci
      saucia longinquo limite saxa secant.                              25

    [85] _perfodit_ Koch; codd. (Birt) _perforat_.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 217


XXVI. (XLIX.)

_Aponus._[86]

Fount that prolongest life for the dwellers in Antenor’s city,
banishing by thy neighbouring waters all harmful fates, seeing that
thy marvels stir utterance even in the dumb, that a people’s love bids
poets to honour thee in song, and that there is no hand whose fingers
have not traced for thee some lines in thankful witness of prayers
granted, shall I not be held guilty alike by the Muses and the Nymphs
if I alone sing not thy praises? How can a spot whose fame is on so
many lips rightly be passed over by me in slighting silence?

Lower than a lofty hill yet higher than the level plain rises a gentle
eminence, clear to see from all around. Prolific is it in hot springs,
for wherever water penetrates its recesses encountering fires drive it
forth. The crumbling ground exhales vapours, and the water, closed down
in its prison of burning rock, forces its way out by many a fissured
channel. ’Tis a region of liquid fire where Vulcan’s flames spring
forth from earth’s breast, a land of burning and of sulphur. Who would
not think it barren? Yet are those fiery fields green with verdure;
grass grows o’er the burning marl and, though the very rocks melt at
the heat, plants, mocking at the flames, boldly flourish.

Beyond this are vast furrows cut in the rock, scarring and cleaving it
in long lines. Traces are

    [86] Aponus (mod. Abano) near Padua, famous for its hot mineral
    springs (_cf._ Mart. vi. 42. 4; Lucan, vii. 193; Sil. Ital. xii.
    218, etc.). Padua (Patavinum) is said to have been founded by
    Antenor.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 218

    Herculei (sic fama refert) monstratur aratri
      semita, vel casus vomeris egit opus,
    in medio pelagi late flagrantis imago
      caerulus inmenso panditur ore lacus
    ingenti fusus spatio; sed maior in altum
      intrat et arcanae rupis inane subit:                              30
    densus nube sua tactuque inmitis et haustu,
      sed vitreis idem lucidus usque vadis.
    consuluit natura sibi, ne tota lateret,
      admisitque oculos, quo vetat ire calor:
    turbidus impulsu venti cum spargitur aër                            35
      glaucaque fumiferae terga serenat aquae,
    tunc omnem liquidi vallem mirabere fundi,
      tunc veteres hastae, regia dona, micant
    (quas inter, nigrae tenebris obscurus harenae,
      discolor abruptum flumen hiatus agit;                             40
    adparent infra latebrae, quas gurges opacus
      implet et abstrusos ducit in antra sinus);
    tunc montis secreta patent, qui flexus in arcum
      aequora pendenti margine summa ligat.

    Viva coronatos adstringit scaena vapores,                           45
      et levis exili cortice terra natat
    calcantumque oneri numquam cessura virorum
      sustentat trepidum, fida ruina, pedem.
    facta manu credas, sic levis circuit oras
      ambitus et tenuis perpetuusque riget.                             50

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 219

they--so tradition tells--of Hercules’ plough, or else chance did the
ploughshare’s work. In the middle of the hill is what seems a broad,
steaming sea, an azure lake of vast extent. Great is the space it
covers, still greater its depth where it plunges down and loses itself
beneath the rocky caverns. A thick pall of steam hangs over it; its
waters cannot be touched nor drunk though they are transparent as
crystal to the very bottom. Nature took counsel for herself and lest
that lake should be entirely beyond our ken she let our eyes penetrate
what, because of its heat, our bodies could not enter. When a breeze
scatters the thick clouds of steam and clears the grey surface of the
erstwhile vaporous water you can gaze with wonder on the valley floor
below that glassy flood where glint old weapons, king’s gifts[87] of
bygone days (between these a gulf of other hue, dark with the eddyings
of black sand, swallows the hastening waters; below there opens a
cavern into which the darkling flood pours, filling every nook and
cranny with its swirling eddies); then are revealed the hidden places
of the hill which, bent round in a bow, encircles the surface of the
water with an overhanging rim.[88]

A verdant amphitheatre surrounds this steaming cauldron, and the
ground floats lightly with slender film[89]; never will it give way
beneath the visitor’s weight, upholding his timorous feet, trusty
though seeming so unsure. One would think it the work of man’s hand, so
smoothly does its circuit enfold the shore, slight and yet firm all the
way. The water

    [87] Doubtless _ex voto_ offerings.

    [88] The “hidden places” (_i.e._ the sides of the mountain below
    the water-level) are “revealed” because of the translucency of the
    water.

    [89] Claudian describes a film or crust which encircles the lake
    and forms a path.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 220

    haerent stagna lacu plenas aequantia ripas
      praescriptumque timent transiluisse modum;
    quod superat, fluvius devexa rupe volutus
      egerit et campi dorsa recurva petit,
    devehit exceptum nativo spira[90] meatu;                            55
      in patulas plumbi labitur inde vias;
    nullo cum strepitu madidis infecta favillis
      despumat niveum fistula cana salem.
    multifidas dispergit opes artemque secutus,
      qua iussere manus, mobile torquet iter                            60
    et iunctos rapido pontes subtermeat aestu
      adflatasque vago temperat igne tholos.
    acrior interius, rauci cum murmure saxi,
      spumeus eliso pellitur amne vapor.--
    hinc pigras repetunt fessi sudore lacunas,                          65
      frigora quis longae blanda dedere morae.

    Salve Paeoniae largitor nobilis undae,
      Dardanii salve gloria magna soli,
    publica morborum requies, commune medentum
      auxilium, praesens numen, inempta salus.                          70
    seu ruptis inferna ruunt incendia ripis
      et nostro Phlegethon devius orbe calet,
    sulphuris in venas gelidus seu decidit amnis
      accensusque fluit (quod manifestat odor),
    sive pares[91] flammas undarum lance rependens                      75
      arbiter in foedus mons elementa vocat,
    ne cedant superata sibi, sed legibus aequis
      alterius vires possit utrumque pati:

    [90] _spira_ Heinsius; Birt follows MSS. _spina_.

    [91] _pares_ EVJ; Birt reads _pari_ (A). If _pari_, probably a
    juristic formula (= _aequa lance_); cf. Symm. Epp. ii. 56. 1.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 221

in the lake stands motionless, filling it to the brim and fearing
to o’erstep its appointed limit. The overflow runs in a stream down
a sloping rock and seeks the undulating plain below. A natural but
tortuous channel carries the water away and thence it flows into an
open conduit of lead. These pipes, noiselessly impregnated with some
powderous mineral that the water carries down, produce a snow-white
distillation of salt. The streams branch off in all directions carrying
with them this natural wealth whithersoever art has directed their
going, flexing this way and that their errant courses, flowing in swift
torrent below aqueducts and warming the arches with the heat of their
rushing waters. Within the arches, amid the roarings of the echoing
rock, issues forth fiercer steam and vapour as the water rushes out.
Then the sick, weak with sweating, seek next the stagnant pools that
long time has made pleasantly cool.

Hail to thee, stream, generous giver of the waters of healing, chief
glory of the land of Italy, doctor of all that come to thee, common
helper of all Aesculapius’ sons; a very present deity for whose aid
there is nought to pay. Whether it be that hell’s fiery streams have
burst their banks and that Phlegethon gone astray bestows his heat
upon the upper world, or that a river, originally of cold water, sinks
down into veins of sulphur and rises thence afire (as one would think
from the smell), or that the mountain in arbitration summons the two
elements to a treaty, balancing a certain quantity of fire against a
similar amount of water that neither yield to the other but under a
just law of equipoise each may withstand the other’s might--whatsoever

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 222

    quidquid erit causae, quocumque emitteris ortu,
      non sine consilio currere certa fides.                            80
    quis casum meritis adscribere talibus audet?
      quis negat auctores haec statuisse deos?
    ille pater rerum, qui saecula dividit astris,
      inter prima poli te quoque sacra dedit
    et fragilem nostri miseratus corporis usum                          85
      telluri medicas fundere iussit aquas,
    Parcarumque colos exoratura severas
      flumina laxatis emicuere iugis.

    Felices, proprium qui te meruere, coloni,
      fas quibus est Aponon iuris habere sui.                           90
    non illis terrena lues corrupta nec Austri
      flamina nec saevo Sirius igne nocet,
    sed quamvis Lachesis letali stamine damnet,
      in te fata sibi prosperiora petunt.
    quodsi forte malus membris exuberat umor                            95
      languida vel nimio viscera felle rubent,
    non venas reserant nec vulnere vulnera sanant
      pocula nec tristi gramine mixta bibunt:
    amissum lymphis reparant impune vigorem,
      pacaturque aegro luxuriante dolor.                               100


XXVII. (XLIV.)

_Phoenix._

      Oceani summo circumfluus aequore lucus
    trans Indos Eurumque viret, qui primus anhelis
    sollicitatur equis vicinaque verbera sentit,
    umida roranti resonant cum limina curru,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 223

shall prove to be the cause, whatever the origin, of this we may be
sure--that thou flowest not without design. Who would dare to ascribe
such a miracle to chance? Who could deny that the overruling gods have
so ordained? Nature’s lord, who measures the centuries by the stars,
has given thee a place of honour among the works of his divinity, and,
pitying the feebleness of our human bodies, has bidden pour forth
healing waters for the earth, and from the riven hills burst forth
streams that should win pardon from the Fates’ relentless distaffs.

Happy ye whose lot it is to dwell by those banks and to possess Aponus
for your own; you no plague of earth, no pestilence-fraught winds of
the south, nor Sirius with his cruel fires can harm. Should Lachesis’
fatal thread threaten death men find in thee a more propitious fate. If
it chance that noxious humours swell their limbs or that excess of bile
inflames their ailing bowels they need not to open their veins nor to
cure one wound with another nor yet to drink medicine of bitter herbs.
By thy water’s aid they renew their lost strength without suffering;
’mid luxury the sick find relief from pain.


XXVII. (XLIV.)

_The Phoenix._[92]

There is a leafy wood fringed by Ocean’s farthest marge beyond the
Indes and the East where Dawn’s panting coursers first seek entrance;
it hears the lash close by, what time the watery threshold echoes to
the dewy car; and hence comes forth the rosy

    [92] C. follows Herodotus (ii. 73) fairly closely.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 224

    unde rubet ventura dies longeque coruscis                            5
    nox adflata rotis refugo pallescit amictu:
    haec fortunatus nimium Titanius ales
    regna colit solusque plaga defensus iniqua
    possidet intactas aegris animalibus oras
    saeva nec humani patitur contagia mundi.                            10
    par volucer superis, stellas qui vividus aequat
    durando membrisque terit redeuntibus aevum,
    non epulis saturare famem, non fontibus ullis
    adsuetus prohibere sitim; sed purior illum
    solis fervor alit ventosaque pabula potat                           15
    Tethyos, innocui carpens alimenta vaporis.
    arcanum radiant oculi iubar. igneus ora
    cingit honos. rutilo cognatum vertice sidus
    attollit cristatus apex tenebrasque serena
    luce secat. Tyrio pinguntur crura veneno.                           20
    antevolant Zephyros pinnae, quas caerulus ambit
    flore color sparsoque super ditescit in auro.

    Hic neque concepto fetu nec semine surgit,
    sed pater est prolesque sui nulloque creante
    emeritos artus fecunda morte reformat                               25
    et petit alternam totidem per funera vitam.
    namque ubi mille vias longinqua retorserit aestas,
    tot ruerint hiemes, totiens ver cursibus actum,
    quas tulit autumnus, dederit cultoribus umbras:
    tum multis gravior tandem subiungitur annis                         30
    lustrorum numero victus: ceu lassa procellis
    ardua Caucasio nutat de culmine pinus
    seram ponderibus pronis tractura ruinam;
    pars cadit adsiduo flatu, pars imbre peresa
    rumpitur, abripuit partem vitiosa vetustas.                         35

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 225

morn while night, illumined by those far-shining wheels of fire, casts
off her sable cloak and broods less darkly. This is the kingdom of the
blessèd bird of the sun where it dwells in solitude defended by the
inhospitable nature of the land and immune from the ills that befall
other living creatures; nor does it suffer infection from the world of
men. Equal to the gods is that bird whose life rivals the stars and
whose renascent limbs weary the passing centuries. It needs no food to
satisfy hunger nor any drink to quench thirst; the sun’s clear beam is
its food, the sea’s rare spray its drink--exhalations such as these
form its simple nourishment. A mysterious fire flashes from its eye,
and a flaming aureole enriches its head. Its crest shines with the
sun’s own light and shatters the darkness with its calm brilliance. Its
legs are of Tyrian purple; swifter than those of the Zephyrs are its
wings of flower-like blue dappled with rich gold.

Never was this bird conceived nor springs it from any mortal seed,
itself is alike its own father and son, and with none to recreate it,
it renews its outworn limbs with a rejuvenation of death, and at each
decease wins a fresh lease of life. For when a thousand summers have
passed far away, a thousand winters gone by, a thousand springs in
their course given to the husbandmen that shade[93] of which autumn
robbed them, then at last, fordone by the number of its years, it
falls a victim to the burden of age; as a tall pine on the summit of
Caucasus, wearied with storms, heels over with its weight and threatens
at last to crash in ruin; one portion falls by reason of the unceasing
winds, another breaks away rotted by the rain, another consumed by the
decay of years.

    [93] _i.e._ given leaves which in turn supply shade.

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                              Page 226

      Iam breve decrescit lumen languetque senili
    segnis stella gelu, qualis cum forte tenetur
    nubibus et dubio vanescit Cynthia cornu.
    iam solitae medios alae transcurrere nimbos
    vix ima tolluntur humo. tum conscius aevi                           40
    defuncti reducisque parans exordia formae
    arentes tepidis de collibus eligit herbas
    et tumulum texens pretiosa fronde Sabaeum
    componit, bustumque sibi partumque futurum.
      Hic sedet et Solem blando clangore salutat                        45
    debilior miscetque preces ac supplice cantu
    praestatura novas vires incendia poscit.
    quem procul adductis vidit cum Phoebus habenis,
    stat subito dictisque pium solatur alumnum:
    “o senium positure rogo falsisque sepulcris                         50
    natales habiture vices, qui saepe renasci
    exitio proprioque soles pubescere leto,
    accipe principium rursus corpusque coactum
    desere. mutata melior procede figura.”
      Haec fatus propere flavis e crinibus unum                         55
    concussa cervice iacit missoque volentem
    vitali fulgore ferit. iam sponte crematur
    ut redeat gaudetque mori festinus in ortum.
    fervet odoratus telis caelestibus agger
    consumitque senem. nitidos stupefacta iuvencos                      60
    luna premit pigrosque polus non concitat axes
    parturiente rogo: curis Natura laborat,

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                              Page 227

Now the Phoenix’s bright eye grows dim and the pupil becomes palsied by
the frost of years, like the moon when she is shrouded in clouds and
her horn begins to vanish in the mist. Now his wings, wont to cleave
the clouds of heaven, can scarce raise them from the earth. Then,
realizing that his span of life is at an end and in preparation for
a renewal of his splendour, he gathers dry herbs from the sun-warmed
hills, and making an interwoven heap of the branches of the precious
tree of Saba he builds that pyre which shall be at once his tomb and
his cradle.

On this he takes his seat and as he grows weaker greets the Sun with
his sweet voice; offering up prayers and supplications he begs that
those fires will give him renewal of strength. Phoebus, on seeing him
afar, checks his reins and staying his course consoles his loving child
with these words: “Thou who art about to leave thy years behind upon
yon pyre, who, by this pretence of death, art destined to rediscover
life; thou whose decease means but the renewal of existence and who
by self-destruction regainest thy lost youth, receive back thy life,
quit the body that must die, and by a change of form come forth more
beauteous than ever.”

So speaks he, and shaking his head casts one of his golden hairs and
smites willing Phoenix with its life-giving effulgence. Now, to ensure
his rebirth, he suffers himself to be burned and in his eagerness to be
born again meets death with joy. Stricken with the heavenly flame the
fragrant pile catches fire and burns the aged body. The moon in amaze
checks her milk-white heifers and heaven halts his revolving spheres,
while the pyre conceives the new life; Nature takes care that the
deathless bird

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 228

    aeternam ne perdat avem, flammasque fideles
    admonet, ut rerum decus inmortale remittant.
      Continuo dispersa vigor per membra volutus                        65
    aestuat et venas recidivus sanguis inundat.
    victuri cineres nullo cogente moveri
    incipiunt plumaque rudem vestire favillam.
    qui fuerat genitor, natus nunc prosilit idem
    succeditque novus: geminae confinia vitae                           70
    exiguo medius discrimine separat ignis.
      Protinus ad Nilum manes sacrare paternos
    auctoremque globum Phariae telluris ad oras
    ferre iuvat. velox alienum pergit in orbem
    portans gramineo clausum velamine funus.                            75
    innumerae comitantur aves stipatque volantem
    alituum suspensa cohors. exercitus ingens
    obnubit vario late convexa meatu.
    nec quisquam tantis e milibus obvius audet
    ire duci, sed regis iter fragrantis adorant.                        80
    non ferus accipiter, non armiger ipse Tonantis
    bella movet: commune facit reverentia foedus.
    talis barbaricas flavo de Tigride turmas
    ductor Parthus agit: gemmis et divite cultu
    luxurians sertis apicem regalibus ornat;                            85
    auro frenat equum, perfusam murice vestem
    Assyria signatur acu tumidusque regendo
    celsa per famulas acies dicione superbit.
      Clara per Aegyptum placidis notissima sacris
    urbs Titana colit, centumque adcline columnis                       90
    invehitur templum Thebano monte revulsis.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 229

perish not, and calls upon the sun, mindful of his promise, to restore
its immortal glory to the world.

Straightway the life spirit surges through his scattered limbs; the
renovated blood floods his veins. The ashes show signs of life; they
begin to move though there is none to move them, and feathers clothe
the mass of cinders. He who was but now the sire comes forth from the
pyre the son and successor; between life and life lay but that brief
space wherein the pyre burned.

His first delight is to consecrate his father’s spirit by the banks
of the Nile and to carry to the land of Egypt the burned mass from
which he was born. With all speed he wings his way to that foreign
strand, carrying the remains in a covering of grass. Birds innumerable
accompany him, and whole flocks thereof throng his airy flight. Their
mighty host shuts out the sky where’er it passes. But from among
so vast an assemblage none dares outstrip the leader; all follow
respectfully in the balmy wake of their king. Neither the fierce hawk
nor the eagle, Jove’s own armour-bearer, fall to fighting; in honour
of their common master a truce is observed by all. Thus the Parthian
monarch leads his barbarous hosts by yellow Tigris’ banks, all glorious
with jewels and rich ornament and decks his tiara with royal garlands;
his horse’s bridle is of gold, Assyrian embroidery embellishes his
scarlet robes, and proud with sovereignty he lords it o’er his
numberless slaves.

There is in Egypt a well-known city celebrated for its pious sacrifices
and dedicated to the worship of the Sun. Its temple rests on a hundred
columns hewn from the quarries of Thebes. Here, as the

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 230

    illic, ut perhibent, patriam de more reponit
    congeriem vultumque dei veneratus erilem
    iam flammae commendat onus, iam destinat aris
    semina relliquiasque sui: mirata relucent                           95
    limina; divino spirant altaria fumo,
    et Pelusiacas productus ad usque paludes
    Indus odor penetrat nares completque salubri
    tempestate viros et nectare dulcior aura
    ostia nigrantis Nili septena vaporat.                              100
      O felix heresque tui! quo solvimur omnes,
    hoc tibi suppeditat vires; praebetur origo
    per cinerem, moritur te non pereunte senectus.
    vidisti quodcumque fuit; te saecula teste
    cuncta revolvuntur; nosti quo tempore pontus                       105
    fuderit elatas scopulis stagnantibus undas,
    quis Phaëthonteis erroribus arserit annus,
    et clades te nulla rapit solusque superstes
    edomita tellure manes: non stamina Parcae
    in te dira legunt nec ius habuere nocendi.                         110


XXVIII. (XLVII.)

_Nilus._

      Felix, qui Pharias proscindit vomere terras:
    nubila non sperat tenebris condentia caelum
    nec graviter flantes pluviali frigore Cauros
    invocat aut arcum variata luce rubentem.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 231

story tells, the Phoenix is wont to store his father’s ashes and,
adoring the image of the god, his master, to entrust his precious
burden to the flames. He places on the altar that from which he is
sprung and that which remains of himself. Bright shines the wondrous
threshold; the fragrant shrine is filled with the holy smoke of the
altar and the odour of Indian incense, penetrating even as far as the
Pelusiac marshes, fills the nostrils of men, flooding them with its
kindly influence and with a scent sweeter than that of nectar perfumes
the seven mouths of the dark Nile.

Happy bird, heir to thine own self! Death which proves our undoing
restores thy strength. Thine ashes give thee life and though thou
perish not thine old age dies. Thou hast beheld all that has been,
hast witnessed the passing of the ages. Thou knowest when it was that
the waves of the sea rose and o’erflowed the rocks, what year it was
that Phaëthon’s error devoted to the flames. Yet did no destruction
overwhelm thee; sole survivor thou livest to see the earth subdued;
against thee the Fates gather not up their threads, powerless to do
thee harm.


XXVIII. (XLVII.)

_The Nile._[94]

Blessèd is the man who cleaves the soil of Egypt with his plough; he
need not hope for clouds to shroud the heavens in darkness nor call
upon the storm-winds that bring the chilling rain or the rainbow bright
with its various colours.

    [94] Claudian again borrows from Herodotus (ii. 20-27).

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 232

      Aegyptus sine nube ferax imbresque serenos                         5
    sola tenet; secura poli, non indiga venti
    gaudet aquis, quas ipsa vehit, Niloque redundat:
    qui rapido tractu mediis elatus ab Austris,
    flammiferae patiens zonae cancrique calentis,
    fluctibus ignotis nostrum procurrit in orbem                        10
    secreto de fonte cadens, qui semper inani
    quaerendus ratione latet, nec contigit ulli
    hoc vidisse caput: fertur sine teste creatus
    flumina profundens alieni conscia caeli.
    inde vago lapsu Libyam dispersus in omnem                           15
    Aethiopum per mille ruit nigrantia regna
    et loca continuo solis damnata vapore
    inrorat populisque salus sitientibus errat
    per Meroën Blemyasque feros atramque Syenem.
    hunc bibit infrenis Garamas domitorque ferarum                      20
    Gyrraeus, qui vasta colit sub rupibus antra,
    qui ramos ebeni, dentes qui vellit eburnos,
    et gens compositis crinem velata sagittis.
      Nec vero similes causas crescentibus undis
    aut tempus meruit. glacie non ille soluta                           25
    nec circumfuso scopulis exuberat imbre.
    nam cum tristis hiems alias produxerit undas,
    tunc Nilum retinent ripae; cum languida cessant
    flumina, tunc Nilus mutato iure tumescit.
    quippe quod ex omni fluvio spoliaverit aestas,                      30
    hoc Nilo natura refert, totumque per orbem
    collectae partes unum revocantur in amnem;

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 233

Fertile is Egypt without clouds; here alone is sunshine and yet rain.
She regards not the sky, needs not the wind; enough for her the water
she herself contains, Nile’s overflow. This swiftly-flowing river rises
in the mountainous country of the south where it suffers the heats
of the torrid zone and of the scorching Crab and issues forth from
regions unknown into our world. Whence it comes none knows, for vain
has ever been the search after its springing nor has any ever seen
that source. ’Tis said that, fashioned without witness, it pours forth
waters that have known a clime other than ours. Thence with errant
stream it stretches through all Libya, and through Ethiopia’s thousand
dusky kingdoms where it waters lands condemned to the sun’s unceasing
fires, saviour of thirsting peoples, and threads its course across
Meroë and black Syene and through the country of the wild Blemyae. The
unconquered Garamantes and the Gyrraei who can tame wild animals drink
of its waters, as do those tribes who dwell in huge rocky caverns,
gathering the wood of ebony-trees and robbing the elephant of his tusks
of ivory, and the folk who wear arrows in their hair.

Neither the cause nor yet the season of its overflow is the same as
that of other rivers. Its waters rise neither because of melted snows
nor by reason of rains flooding its rocky marge; for when dull winter
giveth increase to other rivers Nile keeps within his banks; when other
rivers flow with diminished stream, Nile, under other laws, rises. For
of a truth whatever toll summer has exacted from all rivers Nature
repays to the Nile, and waters gathered together from the whole world
meet thus

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 234

    quoque die Titana canis flagrantior armat
    et rapit umores madidos venasque calore
    compescit radiisque potentibus aestuat axis,                        35
    Nilo bruma venit, contraria tempora mundo:
    defectis solitum referens cultoribus aequor
    effluit Aegaeo stagnantior, acrior alto
    Ionio seseque patentibus explicat arvis:
    fluctuat omnis ager; remis sonuere novales;                         40
    saepius, aestivo iaceat cum forte sopore,
    cernit cum stabulis armenta natantia pastor.


XXIX. (XLVIII.)

_Magnes._

      Quisquis sollicita mundum ratione secutus
    semina rimatur rerum, quo luna laborat
    defectu, quae causa iubet pallescere solem,
    unde rubescentes ferali crine cometae,
    unde fluant venti, trepidae quis viscera terrae                      5
    concutiat motus, quis fulgura ducat hiatus,
    unde tonent nubes, quo lumine floreat arcus,
    hoc mihi quaerenti, si quid deprendere veri
    mens valet, expediat.
                          Lapis est cognomine magnes
    decolor obscurus vilis. non ille repexam                            10
    caesariem regum, non candida virginis ornat
    colla nec insigni splendet per cingula morsu;
    sed nova si nigri videas miracula saxi,
    tunc pulchros superat cultus et quidquid Eois

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 235

in one river. Then when the Dog-star increases the heat of the sun and
sucks up all moisture, drying up earth’s veins and filling heaven with
its scorching rays, winter comes upon the Nile, though elsewhere all is
summer. Then, bringing back to the fainting husbandmen its accustomed
waters, it o’erflows ampler than the Aegean, fiercer than the deep
Ionian, and spreads itself over the low-lying country. All the fields
are aswim; plough-land sounds to the beat of the oar, and full often
the shepherd, o’ercome with summer’s heat, wakes to see flocks and fold
carried away by the flood.


XXIX. (XLVIII.)

_The Magnet._

Whosoever with anxious thought examines the universe and searches out
the origin of things--the reason of the sun’s and moon’s eclipse, the
causes of comets’ red and baneful fires, the source of the winds, the
motion that makes the earth to quake, the force that splits the heavens
in twain, the noise of the thunder, the brilliance of the rainbow, let
this man (if man’s mind has any power to conceive the truth) explain to
me something I would fain understand.

There is a stone called the loadstone; black, dull, and common. It does
not adorn the braided hair of kings nor the snowy necks of girls, nor
yet shine in the jewelled buckles of warriors’ belts. But consider the
marvellous properties of this dull-looking stone and you will see that
it is of more worth than lovely gems and any pearl sought of

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 236

    Indus litoribus Rubra scrutatur in alga.                            15
    nam ferro meruit vitam ferrique rigore
    vescitur; hoc dulces epulas, hoc pabula novit;
    hinc proprias renovat vires; hinc fusa per artus
    aspera secretum servant alimenta vigorem;
    hoc absente perit: tristi morientia torpent                         20
    membra fame, venasque sitis consumit apertas.

    Mavors, sanguinea qui cuspide verberat urbes,
    et Venus, humanas quae laxat in otia curas,
    aurati delubra tenent communia templi.
    effigies non una deis: sed ferrea Martis                            25
    forma nitet, Venerem magnetica gemma figurat.
    illis conubium celebrat de more sacerdos.
    ducit flamma choros; festa frondentia myrto
    limina cinguntur, roseisque cubilia surgunt
    floribus, et thalamum dotalis purpura velat.                        30
    hic mirum consurgit opus: Cytherea maritum
    sponte rapit caelique toros imitata priores
    pectora lascivo flatu Mavortia nectit
    et tantum suspendit onus galeaeque lacertos
    implicat et vivis totum complexibus ambit.                          35
    ille lacessitus longo spiraminis actu
    arcanis trahitur gemma de coniuge nodis.
    pronuba fit Natura deis ferrumque maritat
    aura tenax: subitis sociantur numina furtis.

    Quis calor infudit geminis alterna metallis                         40
    foedera? quae duras iungit concordia mentes?
    flagrat anhela silex et amicam saucia sentit
    materiem placidosque chalybs cognoscit amores.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 237

Indian amid the seaweed on the Red Sea’s shores. It lives on iron and
feeds on its inflexible nature; iron is its food and nourishment;
from iron it recruits its strength. This seemingly inedible food,
circulating throughout its body, renews its hidden powers. Without iron
the loadstone dies; its bulk wastes away from lack of nourishment and
thirst parches its emptied veins.

Mars, who strikes cities with his bloody spear, and Venus, who changes
human cares to ease, share a common shrine and temple built of gold.
Each deity has his own image; Mars, a polished iron statue, Venus, one
fashioned of the loadstone. The priest duly celebrates their union. The
nuptial torch precedes the choir; myrtle wreaths adorn the portals, the
couches are piled with roses, while cloth of scarlet dye, as befits
a marriage, adorns the bridal chamber. But, lo, a prodigy: Cytherea,
without quitting her station, attracts her husband to her, and
recalling the scene of which heaven was once witness, clasps Mars to
her bosom with amorous breath. There she holds him suspended; her arms
enfold the helmet of the god and clasp his whole body in a lifelike
embrace. He, stirred by the far-compelling influence of her breath,
is drawn towards her by the secret chains of his jewel-bride. Nature
presides over the divine marriage; a binding breath woos the steel to
wedlock; suddenly two deities are mated in secret union.

What hidden warmth infuses mutual sympathy into these twin metals? What
harmony makes one their stubborn souls? The stone sighs and burns, and
smitten with love recognizes in the iron the object of its desire,
while the iron experiences a

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 238

    sic Venus horrificum belli compescere regem
    et vultum mollire solet, cum sanguine praeceps                      45
    aestuat et strictis mucronibus asperat iras.
    sola feris occurrit equis solvitque tumorem
    pectoris et blando praecordia temperat igni.
    pax animo tranquilla datur, pugnasque calentes
    deserit et rutilas declinat in oscula cristas.                      50
      Quae tibi, saeve puer, non est permissa potestas?
    tu magnum superas fulmen caeloque relicto
    fluctibus in mediis cogis mugire Tonantem.
    iam gelidas rupes vivoque carentia sensu
    membra feris, iam saxa tuis obnoxia telis,                          55
    et lapides suus ardor agit, ferrumque tenetur
    inlecebris; rigido regnant in marmore flammae.


XXX. (XXIX.)

_Laus Serenae._

      Dic, mea Calliope, tanto cur tempore differs
    Pierio meritam serto redimire Serenam?
    vile putas donum, solitam consurgere gemmis
    et Rubro radiare mari si floribus ornes
    reginae regina comam? sed floribus illis,                            5
    quos neque frigoribus Boreas nec Sirius urit
    aestibus, aeterno sed veris honore rubentes

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 239

gentle attraction for the stone. It is thus that Venus often holds the
fierce god of war in check and softens his fiery glance when the angry
blood boils within him and with drawn sword he whets his wrath. She
alone can face his fierce steeds and appease the tumult of his heart,
calming his anger with gentle flame. Peace and quiet are restored
within his soul; he abjures the heat of battle and bends his head,
helmed with ruddy plumes, to kiss the goddess.

Cruel boy, is aught beyond thy powers? Thou dost master the mighty
thunderbolt; thou canst force the Thunderer to leave the sky and bellow
amid the waves. Now thou showest that thou canst smite cold rocks and
shapes not instinct with feeling or life, that stone can be wounded
by thine arrows. Rocks are stirred by a passion of their own; iron
is obedient to thy blandishments; thy flames exercise dominion over
hardest marl.


XXX. (XXIX.)

_In praise of Serena._[95]

Say, my Muse, why tarriest thou so long to crown Serena’s brows with
the Pierian garland they so well deserve? Thinkest thou the gift too
poor shouldst thou, a queen, deck but with flowers the head of a queen
accustomed rather to wear a tiara bright with all the jewels of the Red
Sea? Nay, those flowers of thine are such that neither Boreas’ cold
blast nor Sirius’ scorching heat can hurt them; theirs is the bloom of
everlasting spring for they

    [95] For Serena, niece and adoptive daughter of Theodosius and
    wife of Stilicho, _cf._ Introduction, p. xvi. I follow Vollmer (in
    Pauly-Wissowa, art. “Claudianus”) rather than Birt in dating this
    poem _circ._ 398 and XXXI. as 404.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 240

    fons Aganippea Permessius educat unda:
    unde piae pascuntur apes et prata legentes
    transmittunt saeclis Heliconia mella futuris.                       10
      Dignius an vates alios exercuit unum
    femineae virtutis opus? quod sponte redempto
    casta maritali successit Thessala fato
    inque suos migrare virum non abnuit annos,
    hoc Grai memorant. Latiis movet ora Camenis                         15
    praescia fatorum Tanaquil rediensque per undas
    Cloelia Thybrinas et eodem flumine ducens
    Claudia virgineo cunctantem crine Cybeben.
    anne aliud toto molitur carminis actu
    Maeonii mens alta senis? quod stagna Charybdis                      20
    armavit, quod Scylla canes, quod pocula Circe,
    Antiphatae vitata fames surdoque carina
    remige Sirenum cantus transvecta tenaces,
    lumine fraudatus Cyclops, contempta Calypso:
    Penelopae decus est atque uni tanta paratur                         25
    scaena pudicitiae. terrae pelagique labores
    et saevi totidem bellis quot fluctibus anni
    coniugii docuere fidem. sit Claudia felix
    teste dea castosque probet sub numine mores
    absolvens puppisque moras crimenque pudoris:                        30
    Penelope trahat arte procos fallatque furentes
    stamina nocturnae relegens Laërtia telae:
    non tamen audebunt titulis certare Serenae.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 241

have grown by Permessus’ fount and been watered by Aganippe’s wave.
Those flowers have fed the holy bees that skim the meadows and transmit
the honey of Helicon to coming generations.

Did ever the single theme of woman’s worth more fitly stir other bards?
The Greeks sing of Alcestis, that chaste Thessalian, who, to win her
husband from death, freely offered herself in his stead, allowing
him to enjoy her own span of life. The Latin Muse takes prophetic
Tanaquil[96] for her theme or Cloelia breasting Tiber’s waves in her
return to Rome or the maiden Claudia dragging with her own hair the
ship which bore Cybele, what time it stuck fast in that same stream.
Does old Homer’s soaring soul essay aught else throughout his song?
Dangers from Charybdis’ gulf, from Scylla’s dogs, from Circe’s cup,
the escape of Ulysses from the greed of Antiphate, the passage of
the ship between the rocks where sat the Sirens to whose alluring
voices the rowers were deaf, the blinding of Cyclops, the desertion of
Calypso--all these do but redound to the glory of Penelope, and the
whole scene is set to display her chastity alone. Toils by land and
sea, ten years of war, ten years of wandering, all do but illustrate
the fidelity of a wife. Let Claudia rejoice in the goddess’ witness
and with heaven’s help vindicate her claim to chastity, freeing at
the same moment the vessel’s stern and her own character from shame.
Let Penelope by artful delays deceive the madness of the suitors and,
ever faithful to Ulysses, delude their solicitations, ever winding up
again by night the warp of her day-spun web. Yet shall not one of these
heroines dare to vie with Serena.

    [96] Tanaquil, sister of the elder Tarquin, wife of the Etruscan
    Lucumo; for her prophetic powers see Livy i. 34. 8. Cloelia, a
    hostage with Porsenna, swam back to Rome (Livy ii. 13. 6). When the
    image of Cybele was brought to Rome (204 B.C.) and the boat stuck
    in a shallow at the Tiber’s mouth it was said that only a chaste
    woman could move it. Claudia, who had been accused of adultery,
    took hold of the rope and towed the vessel to shore.

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                              Page 242

      Quodsi nobilitas cunctis exordia pandit
    laudibus atque omnes redeunt in semina causae,                      35
    quis venerabilior sanguis, quae maior origo
    quam regalis erit? non hoc privata dedere
    limina nec tantum poterat contingere nomen
    angustis laribus; patruo te principe celsam
    bellipotens inlustrat avus, qui signa Britanno                      40
    intulit Oceano Gaetulaque reppulit arma.
    claram Scipiadum taceat Cornelia gentem
    seque minus iactet Libycis dotata trophaeis.
    cardine tu gemino laurus praetendis avitas:
    inde Caledoniis, Australibus inde parentum                          45
    cingeris exuviis. necdum moderamina mundi
    sumpserat illa domus, cum te Lucina beatis
    adderet astrorum radiis, o maxima rerum
    gloria: post genitam didicit regnare Serenam.

    Quid dignum memorare tuis, Hispania, terris                         50
    vox humana valet? primo lavat aequore solem
    India: tu fessos exacta luce iugales
    proluis inque tuo respirant sidera fluctu.
    dives equis, frugum facilis, pretiosa metallis,
    principibus fecunda piis, tibi saecula debent                       55
    Traianum; series his fontibus Aelia fluxit.
    hinc senior, pater, hinc iuvenum diademata fratrum.
    namque aliae gentes, quas foedere Roma recepit
    aut armis domuit, varios aptantur in usus
    imperii; Phariae segetes et Punica messis                           60
    castrorum devota cibo; dat Gallia robur

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                              Page 243

But if noble birth opens the first path to fame and all its causes are
to be traced to ancestry, what blood more noble, what birth more gentle
than that of royalty? Such majesty could not have flourished within the
house of a mere commoner nor could glory so great have sprung from any
simple home. Thou art famous for that thine uncle was an emperor, more
famous by reason of the warlike deeds of thy grandsire[97] who carried
the Roman eagles across the British Channel and repulsed the armed
bands of the Gaetulians. Cornelia, daughter of the Scipios, must cease
to vaunt her high birth and to boast that she received for dower the
spoils of Carthage. Thou canst point to ancestral triumphs in either
hemisphere; on thy brow sit two crowns, the one won by thy sires from
Scotland, the other from the South. Thou glory of the world, what time
Lucina assisted at the birth of thee, our new star, thy house had not
yet taken on itself the government of the whole earth; not till after
Serena’s birth did it know world-empire.

What human voice can worthily sing thy praises, Spain? Though India
first bathes the new-born sun in her ocean yet when the light dies
thou waterest his wearied steeds and in thy waves the stars find
refreshment. Rich in horses, bounteous in crops, dowered with mines,
prolific in good emperors, to thee the world owes Trajan, from thee
sprang the Aelian[98] race. From thy land came the brothers who now
govern us and their father. Other races whom Rome has either received
into alliance or subdued by arms serve the varying needs of empire:
the corn of Egypt, the harvests of Africa go to feed our armies; Gaul
recruits our powerful legions;

    [97] For Theodosius the elder _cf._ note on xv. 216.

    [98] Referring to Hadrian.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 244

    militis; Illyricis sudant equitatibus alae:
    sola novum Latiis vectigal Hiberia rebus
    contulit Augustos. fruges, aeraria, miles
    undique conveniunt totoque ex orbe leguntur:                        65
    haec generat qui cuncta regant. nec laude virorum
    censeri contenta fuit, nisi matribus aeque
    vinceret et gemino certatim splendida sexu
    Flaccillam Mariamque daret pulchramque Serenam.

    Te nascente ferunt per pinguia culta tumentem                       70
    divitiis undasse Tagum; Callaecia risit
    floribus et roseis formosus Duria ripis
    vellere purpureo passim mutavit ovile.
    Cantaber Oceanus vicino litore gemmas
    expuit; effossis nec pallidus Astur oberrat                         75
    montibus: oblatum sacris natalibus aurum
    vulgo vena vomit, Pyrenaeisque sub antris
    ignea flumineae legere ceraunia Nymphae;
    quaeque relabentes undas aestumque secutae
    in refluos venere palam Nereides amnes                              80
    confessae plausu dominam cecinere futuris
    auspicium thalamis. alio tum parvus in axe
    crescebat Stilicho votique ignarus agebat,
    debita cui longe coniunx, penitusque remoto
    orbe parabatur tanti concordia fati.                                85

    Nec tua mortalis meruit cunabula nutrix.
    ubera prima dabant gremio redolente Napaeae
    ternaque te nudis innectens Gratia membris
    adflavit docuitque loqui. quacumque per herbam
    reptares, fluxere rosae, candentia nasci                            90

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 245

Illyria produces stout horsemen for our cavalry. But Spain alone pays
that rarest tribute--the gift of emperors. Corn, money, soldiers come
from all the world over and are gathered together from every quarter of
the globe; Spain gives us men to govern and direct all this. Nor was
she content to be esteemed only for her famous heroes, did she not also
excel in heroines, and, emulous to win glory from either sex, bestow
upon us Flaccilla,[99] Maria, and the fair Serena.

At thy[100] birth they tell how swelling Tagus o’erflowed the rich
fields with gold; Galicia laughed with flowers and on the rose-covered
banks of Duria’s fair stream the once white fleeces of the sheep were
everywhere turned to purple grain. The Cantabrian main cast up jewels
upon the shore, and the pale Asturian delves no more into the bowels of
the mountain; on the day hallowed by thy birth earth poured forth gold
as dross from her open veins. Beneath the caves of the Pyrenees the
river Nymphs gather the fiery thunder-stones. The Nereids, yielding to
the flowing tide, followed the flooding waves up the river’s courses;
there, in the sight of all, they acknowledged thee their queen by their
applause and celebrated thy coming marriage in prophetic strains. And
all the time beneath another sky grew the young Stilicho; he lived
unwitting of his fortune, of the destined bride that awaited him afar,
and in a distant world was the union of such high destinies prepared.

No mortal nurse was worthy to watch over thy cradle. First the Nymphs
gave thee suck at their fragrant breasts; the three Graces held thee in
their arms and breathing upon thee taught thee to speak. Roses sprang
where’er thou didst creep over the

    [99] Flaccilla, wife of Theodosius the Great (_cf._ x. 43).

    [100] _i.e._ Serena’s.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 246

    lilia; si placido cessissent lumina somno,
    purpura surgebat violae, factura cubile
    gramineum, vernatque tori regalis imago,
    omina non audet genetrix tam magna fateri
    successusque suos arcani conscia voti                               95
    spe trepidante tegit.
                           Gestabat Honorius arto
    te pater amplexu. quotiens ad limina princeps
    Theodosius privatus adhuc fraterna veniret,
    oscula libabat teque ad sua tecta ferebat
    laetior; in matrem teneris conversa querellis:                     100
    “quid me de propriis auferre penatibus?” inquis:
    “imperat hic semper!” praesagia luserat error
    et dedit augurium regnis infantia linguae,
    defuncto genitore tuo sublimis adoptat
    te patruus magnique animo solacia luctus                           105
    restituens propius quam si genuisset amavit
    defuncti fratis subolem; nec carior olim
    mutua Ledaeos devinxit cura Lacones:
    addidit et proprio germana vocabula nato
    quaque datur fratris speciem sibi reddit adempti.                  110
    denique cum rerum summas electus habenas
    susciperet, non ante suis intendit amorem
    pignoribus quam te pariter fidamque sororem
    litus ad Eoum terris acciret Hiberis.
      Deseritur iam ripa Tagi Zephyrique relictis                      115
    sedibus Aurorae famulas properatur ad urbes.
    incedunt geminae proles fraterna puellae:
    inde Serena minor, prior hinc Thermantia natu,
    expertes thalami, quarum Cythereia necdum

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 247

grass and white lilies blossomed there; didst thou close thine eyes
in quiet sleep, there burgeoned the purple violet to adorn thy grassy
couch with her imperial colour. Thy mother dared not tell of such
great omens and, knowing her own secret vow, hides with eager hope the
fulfilment she prays for.

Thy father Honorius held thee in a close embrace. Whenever
Theodosius--not emperor then--came to his brother’s house he covered
thee with kisses and loved to take thee with him to his own home. Then
turning to thy mother with gentle complaint, “Why,” thou saidst, “take
me from my own home? This man ever commands.[101]” Prophetic was the
sportive word and thine infant lips gave augury of empire. At the death
of thy sire thine illustrious uncle adopted thee and to console thee
for the bitterness of that loss, bestowed upon thee, his brother’s
child, more love than he could have bestowed on any child of his own.
Leda’s twin sons were not united with a bond of affection more sure. He
gave his own son the name his brother had borne, hoping in some way to
discover in that son the image of the brother he had loved and lost.
Finally, when the people’s choice had summoned him to take up the reins
of empire, Theodosius would not vouchsafe his sons any proof of his
affection for them until he had summoned thee and thy faithful sister
from Spain to the lands of morning.

So now they leave Tagus’ banks and the home of the west winds and
hasten towards the cities that recognize the empery of the east. They
come, the maidens twain, his brother’s children, on this side Serena
the younger, on that Thermantia[102] the elder born, strange as yet to
love; nor has Hymen bent

    [101] Claudian plays on the words _imperat_ and _imperator_.

    [102] This Thermantia is not to be confused with her niece Thermantia,
    daughter of Serena and Stilicho (x. 339).

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 248

    sub iuga cervices niveas Hymenaeus adegit.                         120
    utraque luminibus timidum micat, utraque pulchro
    excitat ore faces. qualis Latonia virgo
    et solo Iove nata soror cum forte revisunt
    aequorei sortem patrui (spumantia cedunt
    aequora castarum gressus venerata dearum;                          125
    non ludit Galatea procax, non improbus audet
    tangere Cymothoën Triton totoque severos
    indicit mores pelago pudor ipsaque Proteus
    arcet ab amplexu turpi Neptunia monstra):
    tales sceptriferi visurae tecta parentis                           130
    limen Honoriades penetrant regale sorores.
    ambas ille quidem patrio complexus amore,
    sed merito pietas in te proclivior ibat;
    et quotiens, rerum moles ut publica cogit,
    tristior aut ira tumidus flagrante redibat,                        135
    cum patrem nati fugerent atque ipsa timeret
    commotum Flaccilla virum, tu sola frementem
    frangere, tu blando poteras sermone mederi.
    adloquiis haerere tuis, secreta fateri.[103]
      Prisca puellares reverentia transilit annos.                     140
    non talem Triviae confert laudator Homerus
    Alcinoo genitam, quae dum per litora vestes
    explicat et famulas exercet laeta choreis,
    auratam iaculata pilam post naufraga somni
    otia progressum foliis expavit Ulixen.                             145

    Pierius labor et veterum tibi carmina vatum
    ludus erat: quos Smyrna dedit, quos Mantua libros

    [103] MSS. have _fideli_; P marks the passage as corrupt. I adopt
    Birt’s _fateri_ and, with Heinsius and Buecheler, suppose a line
    fallen out between 138 and 139.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 249

their snowy necks to the yoke of Venus. Spirited yet modest is the
glance of each; of each the beauty fires the hearts of men. Such as
are Diana and her sister, motherless child of Jove, when they visit
the realm of their uncle, lord of the sea (the foaming waves grow
smooth before them in honour of the approach of the chaste goddesses;
Galatea ceases her mad frolics, bold Triton dares not clasp Cymothoë
in his embrace; o’er the whole ocean the dictates of purity hold sway
and Proteus prevents even Neptune’s flocks from indulging in their
shameless amours)--even such the daughters of Honorius enter the
palace and view the home of their royal parent. Both did the prince
embrace with a father’s love but justly did affection turn more readily
to thee. Often when, his heart troubled by the anxieties of public
business, he returned home depressed or angered, when his own sons fled
his presence and even Flaccilla feared to approach her exasperated
husband, thou alone wert able to stay his wrath and bring healing with
sweet converse. On thy words he would hang, to thee confess his secret
thoughts.

Thy modesty, worthy of an earlier age, surpassed even that of modest
girlhood. Less chaste than thee was that daughter of Alcinous whom
Homer, in his praises of her, compares to Diana; she who spread her
clothes on the shore to dry and sported with her attendant maids,
throwing a golden ball from hand to hand until she fled in alarm from
Ulysses issuing forth from the thicket where he had been enjoying sleep
after his shipwreck.

The study of the Muses and the songs of poets of olden time were thy
delight. Turning the pages of Homer, bard of Smyrna, or those of
Virgil,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 250

    percurrens damnas Helenam nec parcis Elissae.
    nobiliora tenent animos exempla pudicos:
    Laodamia sequens remeantem rursus ad umbras                        150
    Phylaciden et prona ruens Capaneia coniunx
    communes ardente viro mixtura favillas,
    et gravis incumbens casto Lucretia ferro,
    vulnere quae proprio facinus testata tyranni
    armavit patriae iustos in bella dolores                            155
    exule Tarquinio, memorandaque concidit uno
    ulta pudicitiam libertatemque cruore.
    talia facta libens non tu virtute minore,
    sed fato meliore legis.
                           Iam nubilis aetas
    principe sollicito votis erexerat aulam                            160
    incertis, quem tanta tori fortuna maneret.
      Antiquos loquitur Musarum pagina reges,
    quod dura sub lege procos certare iuberent,
    empturos thalamum dubii discrimine leti,
    et sua crudeles gauderent pignora mortis                           165
    ambitione peti. curru Pisaea marino
    fugit praeda Pelops; nam perfidus obice regis
    prodidit Oenomai deceptus Myrtilus axem.
    Hippomenes trepidus cursu ferroque secutam
    aurato volucrem flexit Schoeneida pomo.                            170
    Herculeas vidit Fluvio luctante palaestras
    moenibus ex altis Calydon pretiumque labori
    Deianira fuit, cum pectore victor anhelo
    Alcides fremeret retroque Acheloius iret
    decolor: attonitae stringebant vulnera Nymphae;                    175
    saucia truncato pallebant flumina cornu.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 251

poet of Mantua, thou findest fault with Helen nor canst approve of
Dido. Thy chaste mind fastens upon examples more noble: Laodamia
following Protesilaus as he returned to the shades; Euadne who cast
herself on the flaming pyre whereon her husband Capaneus perished,
wishing to mingle her ashes with his; grave Lucrece who fell upon a
chaste sword, she who self-slain bore witness to the tyrant’s crime,
aroused to war her country’s righteous wrath, drove Tarquin into exile
and died gloriously, having avenged by her one sacrifice both chastity
and freedom. Of such deeds thou dost read with joy, thyself not less in
virtue though more blessed of fortune.

Now that thou art of an age for marriage the hopes of the young
courtiers run high, but the prince hesitates to select the happy man
who is to share thy couch and regal state.

The pages of the poets tell how ancient kings bade suitors contend on
the hard terms of purchasing the bride at hazard of their lives, and
rejoiced that death should be the wooer of their daughters. Pelops
escaped the weapons of Pisa’s king, thanks to the chariot Neptune gave
him, for it was Myrtilus who tricked King Oenomaus by withdrawing the
lynch-pin from the chariot-wheel. Panting Hippomenes got the better of
Atalanta, daughter of Schoeneus, who followed close on his traces, a
sword in her hand, by means of the golden apples. The inhabitants of
Calydon watched from their high battlements the struggle of Hercules
with the river-god when, Deianira being the prize of victory, the
panting hero shouted in triumph and Achelous paled and shrank away,
shorn of his horn, the wound whereof the astonished river nymphs sought
to heal.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 252

    te non Hesperidum pomis, non amne subacto,
    non socerum fallente rota, sed iudice dignus
    Augusto variis Stilicho spectatus in armis
    accipit et regni dotes virtute paravit.                            180
    saepe duces meritis bello tribuere coronas:
    hunc cingit muralis honos; hunc civica quercus
    nexuit; hunc domitis ambit rostrata carinis.
    solus, militiae mira mercede, iugalem
    promeruit Stilicho socero referente coronam.                       185
      Agnovit patrui similem Thermantia curam;
    nupsit et illa duci; sed longe fata sororis
    inferiora tuis. alio tibi numine taedas
    accendit Romana Salus magnisque coronis
    coniugium fit causa tuum. dilectus equorum,                        190
    quos Phrygiae matres Argaeaque gramina pastae
    semine Cappadocum sacris praesaepibus edunt,
    primus honor, gemino mox inde e germine[104] duxit
    agmina commissosque labor sic gessit honores,
    ut semper merito princeps cum magna dedisset,                      195
    deberet maiora tamen. si bellica nubes
    ingrueret, quamvis annis et iure minori
    cedere grandaevos equitum peditumque magistros
    adspiceres totumque palam permittere Martem,
    nec gradus aetatisque pudor senioribus obstat,                     200
    ne iuveni parere velint. ceu flamine molli

    [104] _germine_ is the reading adopted by the Aldine ed. The MSS. vary.
    Birt conjectures _ex ordine_.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 253

But it is neither to the apples of the Hesperides nor to victory over a
river nor to treacherous tampering with a chariot-wheel that Stilicho
owes the winning of thy hand; the emperor himself adjudged him worthy
thereof, for that his valour had been proved in countless wars; his
own courage won him an empress to wife. Generals have often bestowed
decorations on those who have deserved them in battle: one man wins the
mural crown, another the civic wreath, a third, for having defeated
an enemy’s fleet, the naval decoration. Stilicho is the only warrior
who, as the reward for signal services in war, has won from a grateful
father’s hand the crown of marriage.

Thermantia owes her uncle no lesser debt of gratitude: she too was
married to a general. But how far inferior to thine, Serena, was thy
sister’s fortune! For thee with fairer promise Rome’s guardian-angel
kindles the torches, and glorious are the garlands that thy marriage
brings. First to be set in his charge is the care of the horses reared
in the royal stables, whose dams were Phrygian mares, or such as have
pastured on Argos’ plains, whose sires were Cappadocians. Soon he
exercises a double command in the army[105] and fulfils his functions
with such energy and success that, howsoever great the honours heaped
upon him by the emperor, his deserts are ever in excess of his
reward. Whenever the cloud of war threatened thou mightest have seen
experienced commanders of horse and foot give way to a leader younger
and of less exalted rank and without more ado entrust to him the whole
war. Neither rank nor age stays older men through shame from ready
obedience to a youth. As when on a calm sea

    [105] _i.e._ _magister utriusque militiae_ in the East.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 254

    tranquillisque fretis clavum sibi quisque regendum
    vindicat; incumbat si turbidus Auster et unda
    pulset utrumque latus, posito certamine nautae
    contenti meliore manu seseque pavere                               205
    confessi (finem studiis fecere procellae):
    haud aliter Stilicho, fremuit cum Thracia belli
    tempestas, cunctis pariter cedentibus unus
    eligitur ductor; suffragia quippe peregit
    iudex vera timor; victus ratione salutis
      Quis tibi tunc per membra tremor quantaeque cadebant
    ubertim lacrimae, cum saeva vocantibus arma
    iam lituis madido respectans lumina vultu
    optares reducem galeaeque inserta minaci                           215
    oscula cristati raperes festina mariti!
    gaudia quae rursus, cum post victricia tandem
    classica sidereas ferratum pectus in ulnas
    exciperes, castae tuto per dulcia noctis
    otia pugnarum seriem narrare iuberes!                              220
    non illo nitidos umquam bellante capillos
    comere, non solitos gemmarum sumere cultus:
    numinibus votisque vacas et supplice crine
    verris humum: teritur neglectae gratia formae
    cum proprio reditura viro.
                               Nec deside cura                         225
    segnis marcet amor: laudem prudentia belli
    feminea pro parte subit. dum gentibus ille
    confligit, vigili tu prospicis omnia sensu,
    ne quid in absentem virtutibus obvia semper
    audeat invidiae rabies neu fervor iniquus,                         230
    ne qua procul positis furto subsederit armis

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 255

every sailor maintains his right to manage the rudder, but if the
blustering south wind comes upon them and the waves buffet them on
either side, then contention ceases and the sailors accepting a
more skilful hand admit their fear (for the storm has set a term to
their jealousy), even so Stilicho when the storm of war broke out in
Thrace was chosen as commander-in-chief over the heads of all. Fear,
that surest of judges, won him the votes of all; regard for safety
o’ermastered ambition and jealousy was overthrown by dread.

How thou didst tremble and weep when the cruel bugles summoned thy lord
to arms! With a countenance wet with tears thou saw’st him leave thy
home praying for his safe return after snatching the final hasty kiss
from between the bars of his crested helmet’s visor. But again what
joy when at length he returned, preceded by the clarion of victory and
thou couldst hold his still mailed form in thy loving arms once more!
How sweet the long hours of the chaste night wherein thou badest him
tell in safety the story of his battles. Whilst he was at the wars thou
didst not comb thy shining hair nor wear the jewels that were wont to
adorn thee. Thy time is spent in worship and in prayer as thy suppliant
tresses sweep the temple floor; uncared for perishes the gracious
beauty that shall return with thine own lord.

But love languishes not in idleness and sloth; as far as it could a
woman’s watchful care seconds his deeds of glory. While he warred with
foreign nations thou keepest guard lest mad envy or burning calumny
should dare aught against him while far away, and lest, when war was
ended abroad, treachery should lie secretly in wait to injure him

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 256

    calliditas nocitura domi. tu sedula quondam
    Rufino meditante nefas, cum quaereret artes
    in ducis exitium coniuratosque foveret
    contra pila Getas, motus rimata latentes                           235
    mandatis tremebunda virum scriptisque monebas.


XXXI. (XL.)

_Epistula ad Serenam._

    Orphea cum primae sociarent numina taedae
      ruraque compleret Thracia festus Hymen,
    certavere ferae picturataeque volucres,
      dona suo vati quae potiora darent,
    quippe antri memores, cautes ubi saepe sonorae                       5
      praebuerant dulci mira theatra lyrae.
    Caucasio crystalla ferunt de vertice lynces,
      grypes Hyperborei pondera fulva soli,
    furatae Veneris prato per inane columbae
      florea conexis serta tulere rosis,                                10
    fractaque nobilium ramis electra sororum
      cycnus oloriferi vexit ab amne Padi,
    et Nilo Pygmaea grues post bella remenso
      ore legunt Rubri germina cara maris.
    venit et extremo Phoenix longaevus ab Euro                          15
      adportans unco cinnama rara pede.
    nulla avium pecudumque fuit, quae ferre negaret
      vectigal meritae conubiale lyrae.

    Tunc opibus totoque Heliconis sedula regno
      ornabat propriam Calliopea nurum.                                 20

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 257

at home. Thou didst indeed once show thy vigilance what time Rufinus,
hatching his plots, sought means to destroy his master by traitorously
stirring up the Getae against Rome, for thou didst search out his foul
conspiracy and in fear for thy husband’s safety, didst send him warning
by letters and messages.


XXXI. (XL.)

_Letter to Serena._

At the first kindling of Orpheus’ marriage-torch when festive Hymen
filled the countryside of Thrace the beasts and gay-plumaged birds
strove among themselves what best gifts they could bring their poet.
Mindful of the cave whose sounding rocks had offered a wondrous
theatre for his tuneful lyre, the lynxes brought him crystal from
the summits of Caucasus; griffins golden nuggets from regions of the
north; doves wreaths of roses and other flowers which they had flown
to gather from Venus’ meadow; the swan bore from the stream of its
native Padus amber broken from the boughs of the famed sisters[106];
while the cranes, after their war with the pygmies, recrossed the Nile
and gathered in their mouths the precious pearls of the Red Sea. There
came, too, immortal Phoenix from the distant East, bearing rare spices
in his curvèd talons. No bird nor beast was there but brought to that
marriage-feast tribute so richly deserved by Orpheus’ lyre.

Busily Calliopea decked her son’s bride with her riches and all the
treasures of Helicon, and, moreover,

    [106] _i.e._ of Phaëthon, who were changed into poplars.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 258

    ipsam praeterea dominam stellantis Olympi
      ad nati thalamos ausa rogare parens.
    nec sprevit regina deum vel matris honore
      vel iusto vatis ducta favore pii,
    qui sibi carminibus totiens lustraverat aras                        25
      Iunonis blanda numina voce canens
    proeliaque altisoni referens Phlegraea mariti,
      Titanum fractas Enceladique minas.
    ilicet adventu noctem dignata iugalem
      addidit augendis munera sacra toris,                              30
    munera mortales non admittentia cultus,
      munera, quae solos fas habuisse deos.
    sed quod Threicio Iuno placabilis Orphei,
      hoc poteris votis esse, Serena, meis.
    illius expectent famulantia sidera nutum;                           35
      sub pedibus regitur terra fretumque tuis.
    non ego, cum peterem, sollemni more procorum
      promisi gregibus pascua plena meis
    nec, quod mille mihi lateant sub palmite colles
      fluctuet et glauca pinguis oliva coma,                            40
    nec, quod nostra Ceres numerosa falce laboret
      aurataeque ferant culmina celsa trabes.
    suffecit mandasse deam: tua littera nobis
      et pecus et segetes et domus ampla fuit.
    inflexit soceros et maiestate petendi                               45
      texit pauperiem nominis umbra tui.
    quid non perficeret scribentis voce Serenae
      vel genius regni vel pietatis amor?

    Atque utinam sub luce tui contingeret oris
      coniugis et castris et solio generi                               50

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 259

with a mother’s pride dared to invite to her son’s wedding the queen of
starry heaven herself. The queen of the gods spurned not her request
either out of respect for Calliopea herself or because she was drawn
by a just affection for the pious poet who had so often in her honour
chanted his songs before her altars, hymning Juno’s godhead with his
sweet voice and telling of the battles of her lord the Thunderer waged
on the plains of Phlegra, and of the menace of Enceladus and the Titans
there broken. Straightway, counting the marriage--night worthy of her
presence, she brought heavenly gifts to deck the bridal, gifts such
as stoop not to adorn mortals, gifts that the gods alone may possess.
But as Juno showed herself gracious to Thracian Orpheus, so wilt thou,
Serena, be favourable to my prayers. The stars, her slaves, obey the
nod of her head; thee land and sea, subdued beneath thy feet, obey. I
did not, as other suitors use, promise at my courtship fields where
graze unnumbered flocks nor hills covered with countless vines, nor
rich olive-trees waving in the breeze their grey foliage, nor harvests
reaped by a thousand scythes, nor a lofty palace with golden pillars.
Enough was the mandate of a goddess; thy letter, Serena, stands me in
stead of flocks, of harvests, of palace. The shadow of thy name has
won over her parents and an imperial prayer concealed my poverty. When
Serena writes, what with such words could not the empire’s spirit or
duteous love accomplish?[107]

Would heaven had allowed me to solemnize the longed-for day in the
light of thy presence, in thy

    [107] Claudian means that Serena’s imperial position and his
    own respect therefor ensure his obedience. Serena had written
    (_littera_, l. 43) urging Claudian to marry, and the poet uses the
    letter to urge his suit (ll. 37-46).

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 260

    optatum celebrare diem! me iungeret auspex
      purpura, me sancto cingeret aula choro.
    et mihi quam scriptis desponderat ante puellam,
      coniugiis eadem pronuba dextra daret.
    nunc medium quoniam votis maioribus aequor                          55
      invidet et Libycae dissidet ora plagae,
    saltem absens, regina, fave reditusque secundos
      adnue sidereo laeta supercilio.
    terrarum tu pande vias, tu mitibus Euris
      aequora pacari prosperiora iube,                                  60
    ut tibi Pierides doctumque fluens Aganippe
      debita servato vota cliente canant.


XXXII. (XCV.)

_De salvatore._

    Christe potens rerum, redeuntis conditor aevi,
    vox summi sensusque dei, quem fudit ab alta
    mente pater tantique dedit consortia regni,
    impia tu nostrae domuisti crimina vitae
    passus corporea numen[108] vestire figura                            5
    adfarique palam populos hominemque fateri;
    quemque utero inclusum Mariae mox numine viso
    virginei tumuere sinus, innuptaque mater
    arcano stupuit compleri viscera partu

    [108] _numen_ Koch; _mundum_ Birt (following the MSS.); he suggests
    _mentem_.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 261

lord’s camp, before thy son-in-law’s throne. The royal purple would
have been a good omen for our union, the august assembly of the court
would have graced the ceremony and the hand which, by writing that
letter, promised me my bride would have kindled the torch to light her
to the altar. Now that the envious sea deprives me of my fondest hopes
and stretches between thee and the coasts of Libya, yet, though absent,
be gracious unto me, O queen, and of thy goodness grant me a safe
return as by a nod of thy head thou, a goddess, canst do. Make straight
the paths of earth; bid but gentle breezes blow and a calm sea prosper
my voyage, that the Muses and Aganippe’s stream, the fount of song,
may hymn thy praises in gratitude for the saving of their servant, the
poet.[109]


XXXII. (XCV.)

_Of the Saviour._

Christ, lord of the world, founder of a new age of gold, voice and
wisdom of the Most High, proceeding from the Father’s lofty mind and
given by that Father a share in the governance of this great universe,
thou hast overcome the sins of this our mortal life, for thou hast
suffered thy Godhead to be clothed in human form and hath allowed
mankind to address thee face to face and confess thee man. The swelling
womb of the Virgin Mary conceived thee after that she had been visited
by the angel, and the unwed mother, destined to give birth to her own
creator, was astonished at the unborn

    [109] The Muses themselves are to hymn Serena for having by her prayers
    (l. 60) secured the safe return of their servant, Claudian.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 262

    auctorem paritura suum: mortalia corda                              10
    artificem texere poli, mundique repertor
    pars fuit humani generis, latuitque sub uno
    pectore, qui totum late complectitur orbem,
    et qui non spatiis terrae, non aequoris unda
    nec capitur caelo, parvos confluxit in artus.                       15
    quin et supplicii nomen nexusque subisti,
    ut nos subriperes leto mortemque fugares
    morte tua, mox aetherias evectus in auras
    purgata repetens laetum tellure parentem.
      Augustum foveas, festis ut saepe diebus                           20
    annua sinceri celebret ieiunia sacri.


XXXIII.-XXXIX.

_De crystallo cui aqua inerat._


XXXIII. (LVI.)

    Possedit glacies naturae signa prioris
      et fit parte lapis, frigora parte negat.
    sollers lusit hiems, imperfectoque rigore
      nobilior vivis gemma tumescit aquis.


XXXIV. (LVII.)

    Lymphae, quae tegitis cognato carcere lymphas,
      et, quae nunc estis quaeque fuistis, aquae,
    quod vos ingenium iunxit? qua frigoris arte
      torpuit et maduit prodigiosa silex?
    quis tepor inclusus securas vindicat undas?                          5
      interior glacies quo liquefacta Noto?
    gemma quibus causis arcano mobilis aestu
      vel concreta fuit vel resoluta gelu?

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 263

child that grew within her body. A mortal womb hid the artificer of
the heavens: the creator of the world became a part of human nature.
In one body was conceived the God who embraces the whole wide world,
and he whom nor earth nor sea nor sky can contain was enclosed by the
limbs of a little child. Thou wert punished and didst suffer too, for
our sins, to save us from destruction, and didst by thy death overcome
Death. Then didst Thou ascend into Heaven, returning to the Father who
rejoiced at the salvation of the world.

Bless Thou our Emperor that at holy seasons he may for many years to
come observe the fast-days of the calendar.


XXXIII-XXXIX

_On a Crystal enclosing a Drop of Water._

1. This piece of ice still shows traces of its original nature: part of
it has become stone, part resisted the cold. It is a freak of winter’s,
more precious by reason of its incomplete crystallization, for that the
jewel contains within itself living water.

2. Ye waters, who confine waters in a prison akin to them, ye that are
liquid still and ye that were so, what wit has united you? By what
trick of freezing is the marvellous stone at once hard and wet? What
containèd heat has protected those enclosed waters? what warm wind
melted that heart of ice? How comes it that the jewel in whose heart
the water ebbs and flows was either made solid or liquid by frost?

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 264


XXXV. (LVIII.)

    Solibus indomitum glacies Alpina rigorem
      sumebat nimio iam pretiosa gelu
    nec potuit toto mentiri corpore gemmam,
      sed medio mansit proditor orbe latex.
    auctus honor; liquidi crescunt miracula saxi,
      et conservatae plus meruistis aquae.


XXXVI. (LIX.)

    Adspice porrectam splendenti fragmine venam,
      qua trahitur limes lucidiore gelu.
    hic nullum Borean nec brumam sentit opacus
      umor, sed varias itque reditque vias.
    non illum constrinxit hiems, non Sirius axis,                        5
      aetatis spatium non tenuavit edax.


XXXVII. (LX.)

    Clauditur inmunis convexo tegmine rivus,
      duratisque vagus fons operitur aquis.
    nonne vides, propriis ut spumet gemma lacunis
      et refluos ducant pocula viva sinus
    udaque pingatur radiis obstantibus Iris,
      secretas hiemes sollicitante die?                                  5
    mira silex mirusque latex, et flumina vincit
      et lapides merito, quod fluit et lapis est.


XXXVIII. (LXI.)

    Dum crystalla puer contingere lubrica gaudet
      et gelidum tenero pollice versat onus,
    vidit perspicuo deprensas marmore lymphas,
      dura quibus solis parcere novit hiems,
    et siccum relegens labris sitientibus orbem                          5
      inrita quaesitis oscula fixit aquis.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 265

3. Alpine ice was becoming so hard that the sun could not melt it,
and this excess of cold was like to make it precious as diamond. But
it could not imitate that stone in its entirety for at its heart lay
a drop of water which betrayed its nature. As crystal its value is
enhanced, for this liquid rock is accounted a miracle and the water
enclosed within it increases its rarity.

4. See this vein which runs in a bright streak through the translucent
ice. This hidden water fears not any blast of Boreas nor winter’s chill
but runs this way and that. It is not frozen by December’s cold, nor
dried up by July’s sun, nor wasted away by all-consuming time.

5. Safely hidden away in this round covering is a stream, an errant
spring, enclosed within frozen waters. Mark you not how the crystal is
all awash in its cavernous heart where living waters surge this way
and that, and how, when the sun penetrates its frozen depths, the hues
of the rainbow are reflected in it? Wonderful stone, wonderful water:
stranger than all rivers and all stones because it is a stone and yet
fluid.

6. Children love to handle this shining crystal and turn its chilly
mass over and over in their little hands; they see imprisoned in the
transparent rock the water which alone winter forebore to freeze.
Placing the dry sphere against their thirsty lips they press useless
kisses on that which guards the waters they desire.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 266


XXXIX. (LXII.)

    Marmoreum ne sperne globum: spectacula transit
      regia nec Rubro vilior iste mari.
    informis glacies, saxum rude, nulla figurae
      gratia, sed raras inter habetur opes.


XL. (XLI.)

_Epistula ad Olybrium._

    Quid rear, adfatus quod non mihi dirigis ullos
      nec redit alterno pollice ducta salus?
    scribendine labor? sed quae tam prona facultas,
      carmina seu fundis seu Cicerone tonas?
    cedere divitiis animi fortuna fatetur                                5
      et tantas oris copia vincit opes.

    An rarus qui scripta ferat? quin tempore nullo
      cessant Flaminiae pulverulenta viae.
    cum fluat ingenium, cum sit qui dicta reportet,
      quae, nisi contemnor, causa relicta tibi?                         10
    despicis ergo tuum, si fas est credere, vatem
      perfidus, et spatio debilitatur amor.

    Excidimusne tibi? lucem iam condet Hydaspes,
      et Tartesiaco, Sol, oriere vado,
    candescet Geticis Meroë conversa pruinis                            15
      claraque se vetito proluet Ursa mari,
    et, si iam nostros fastidit Olybrius ignes,
      constat Oresteam nil valuisse fidem.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 267

7. Do not despise this sphere of rock-crystal. Kings’ palaces contain
no rarer jewel, nor are the Red Sea’s pearls of greater value. It may
be shapeless ice, unpolished rock, a rough, uncarven mass, yet is it
accounted among the most precious of riches.


XL. (XLI.)

_Letter to Olybrius._

What am I to think, that you send me no greeting, that no “Good
wishes” traced by your fingers come back to me in turn? Is writing
so difficult? Nay, who so eloquent as thou whether thou dost compose
verses or, a second Cicero, thunder forth thy speeches? Greater even
than thy riches is thy genius, greater thine eloquence even than thy
wealth. Are the posts infrequent? Nay, couriers’ feet never allow the
dust to lie on the Flaminian Way. If, then, thou hast the power to
write and messengers in plenty to carry thy letters what reason hast
thou for thy silence unless indeed thou wish to slight me? I take it
thou hast abandoned thy poet and wilt have none of him (though I can
scarce believe it); or distance has made thy heart less fond. Dost thou
forget me? Now shall Hydaspes lay the day to rest, and thou, O sun,
rise from out the seas of Spain; now shall Egypt change her nature and
glisten with Getic frost and the Bear bathe him in forbidden waters.
No, if Olybrius now disdains my love then ’tis sure Orestes’ loyalty
availed nought. Nay come, banish

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 268

    Quin age rumpe moras solaturusque sodalem
      absens eloquio fertiliore doce,                                   20
    crebraque facundo festinet littera cursu
      libris atque animis insinuanda meis.
    dignatus tenui Caesar scripsisse Maroni,
      nec tibi dedecori Musa futura. vale.


XLI. (XLII.)

_Ad Probinum._

    Quem, precor, inter nos habitura silentia finem?
      quando dabit caras littera grata vices?
    me timidum vel te potius dixisse superbum
      convenit? alterius crimen utrumque tenet.
    transfluxere dies et, dum scripsisse priorem                         5
      paenitet, aeternas itur in usque moras.
    sed quid agam? coepisse vetat reverentia vestri;
      hinc amor hortatur scribere. vincat amor.
    “fors iuvat audentes” prisci sententia vatis.
      hac duce non dubitem te reticente loqui;                          10
    audax aut si quid penitus peccasse videbor,
      arguar, ingrati non subiturus onus.
    Romanos bibimus primum te consule fontes
      et Latiae accessit Graia Thalia togae,
    incipiensque tuis a fascibus omina cepi                             15
      fataque debebo posteriora tibi.
    ergo lacessitus tandem rescribe roganti
      et patria florens sorte, Probine, vale.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 269

delay and to console thy friend speak to him from far away with richer
eloquence; hither let many a letter hasten with winged speech, to find
its way to my shelves and to my heart. Augustus disdained not to write
to poor Vergil and my muse shall never bring thee shame. Farewell.


XLI.

_Letter to Probinus._[110]

How long, pray, shall there be silence between us? When shall a welcome
letter win a dear return? Is it right to call me timid or rather thee
proud? Surely each shares the other’s fault. The days slip away and
while each is ashamed to be the first to write our hesitation leads to
an unbroken silence. Yet what am I to do? Respect forbids me to write
first; love encourages me to do so. Let love have his way. Fortune
favours the brave, as the old poet sang. Under her guidance I could
not hesitate to speak, though thou still keep silence. If I shall seem
overbold or guilty of some grave fault, thou mayst blame but I shall
not bear the burden of ingratitude. ’Twas when thou wert consul that
I first drank of the stream of Latin song and that my Muse, deserting
Hellas, assumed the Roman toga.[111] From thy consulship my youth
drew its omens and to thee I shall owe my future destiny. Be moved by
my importunity and after so long a delay answer my letter. Farewell,
Probinus; be thy father’s fortune thine.

    [110] See note on i. 8 and Introduction, p. xiii.

    [111] See Introduction, p. xiii.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 270


XLII. (LIII.)

_De apro et leone._

    Torvus aper fulvusque leo coiere superbis
      viribus, hic saeta saevior, ille iuba;
    hunc Mars, hunc laudat Cybele. dominatur uterque
      montibus; Herculeus sudor uterque fuit.


XLIII. (LXXV.)

_In Curetium._

    Fallaces vitreo stellas componere mundo
      et vaga Saturni sidera saepe queri
    venturumque Iovem paucis promittere nummis
      Cureti genitor noverat Uranius.
    in prolem dilata ruunt periuria patris                               5
      et poenam merito filius ore luit.
    nam spurcos avidae lambit meretricis hiatus
      consumens luxu flagitiisque domum
    et, quas fallacis collegit lingua parentis,
      has eadem nati lingua refundit opes.                              10


XLIV. (LXXVI.)

_In eundem Curetium._

    Si tua, Cureti, penitus cognoscere quaeris
      sidera, patre tuo certius ipse loquar.
    quod furis, adversi dedit inclementia Martis;
      quod procul a Musis, debilis Arcas erat;

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 271


XLII. (LIII.)

_The Wild Boar and the Lion._

A dark boar and a tawny lion met once in battle, each exulting in his
strength: the one shook his cruel bristles, the other his dreadful
mane. One was Mars’ favourite, the other Cybele’s: both are kings of
the mountains, both engaged the labours of Hercules.


XLIII. (LXXV.)

_Against Curetius._[112]

Uranius, Curetius’ father, could set deceptive stars in a sphere of
glass, gloomily shake his head over the errant course of Saturn, or
ensure for a trifle the favourable influence of Jupiter. The father’s
chicanery meets with its punishment, so long deferred, in the son whose
mouth needs must pay the just penalty. For filthy are his delights and
he wastes all his substance in wantoning and debauchery. And so the
tongue of the son has squandered all the riches which that of his lying
father gathered together.


XLIV. (LXXVI.)

_The Same._

Wouldst thou, Curetius, have sure knowledge of thy horoscope, I can
give it thee better than even thy father. Thy madness thou owest to the
evil influence of Mars; thine ignorance of poetry to

    [112] We know nothing further of Curetius.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 272

    quod turpem pateris iam cano podice morbum,                          5
      femineis signis Luna Venusque fuit;
    attrivit Saturnus opes. hoc prorsus in uno
      haereo: quae cunnum lambere causa facit?


XLV. (LV.)

_De concha._

    Transferat huc liquidos fontes Heliconia Nais
      et patulo conchae divitis orbe fluat.
    namque latex doctae qui laverit ora Serenae,
      ultra Pegaseas numen habebit aquas.


XLVI. (LXXII.)

_De chlamyde et frenis._

      Non semper clipei metuendum gentibus orbem
    dilecto studiosa parens fabricabat Achilli,
    Lemnia nec semper supplex ardentis adibat
    antra dei nato galeam factura comantem,
    sed placidos etiam cinctus et mitia pacis                            5
    ornamenta dabat, bello quibus ille peracto
    conspicuus reges inter fulgeret Achivos.
    ipsa manu chlamydes ostro texebat et auro,
    frenaque, quae volucrem Xanthum Baliumque decerent,
    aequore quaesitis onerabat sedula gemmis.                           10
      At tibi diversis, princeps altissime, certant
    obsequiis soceri. Stilicho Mavortia confert
    munera, barbaricas strages Rhenique triumphos.
    reginae contenta modum servare Serena
    in tua sollicitas urget velamina telas.                             15

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 273

enfeebling Mercury; thy shameful disease and premature decay to lady
Moon and lady Venus; Saturn has robbed thee of thy property. But this
one fact is beyond me:--what causes thy filthy ways?


XLV. (LV.)

_The Shell._

Nymph, come from Helicon and pour herein thy limpid waters; fill all
the vast extent of this wondrous shell. Surely the water that has
bathed the face of the poetess Serena will have more virtue than all
the streams of Castalia.


XLVI. (LXXII.)

_On a Cloak and a Bridle._

His loving mother did not always fashion for her dear son Achilles
those round shields that did affright the world; she did not constantly
approach the fiery caverns of the god of Lemnos, begging a plumèd
helmet for her son. She gave him, besides these, garments of peace and
unwarlike adornments wherewith, after the toils of war, he might shine
conspicuous among the chiefs of the Achaeans. With her own hand she
wove him cloaks of purple and gold and with patient care studded with
ocean gems bridles to adorn his fleet steeds, Xanthus and Balius.

On thee, most puissant emperor, thy wife’s parents bestow diverse
presents. Stilicho gives thee warlike gifts--slaughter of barbarians
and victories on the Rhine; Serena, content to do such work as befits a
queen, plies her busy loom to weave thee raiment.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 274


XLVII. (LXXIII.)

_De equo dono dato._

    O felix sonipes, tanti cui frena mereri
    numinis et sacris licuit servire lupatis,
    seu tua per campos vento iuba lusit Hiberos,
    seu te Cappadocum gelida sub valle natantem
    Argaeae lavere nives, seu laeta solebas                              5
    Thessaliae rapido perstringere pascua cursu:
    accipe regales cultus et crine superbus
    erecto virides spumis perfunde smaragdos.
    luxurient tumido gemmata monilia collo,
    nobilis auratos iam purpura vestiat armos,                          10
    et medium te zona liget variata colorum
    floribus et castae manibus sudata Serenae,
    Persarum gentile decus. sic quippe laborat
    maternis studiis nec dedignatur equestres
    moliri phaleras genero latura decorem.                              15


XLVIII. (LXX.)

_De zona equi regii missa Honorio Augusta a Serena._

    Accipe parva tuae, princeps venerande, sororis
      munera, quae manibus texuit ipsa suis,
    dumque auro phalerae, gemmis dum frena renident,
      hac uterum zona cinge frementis equi,
    sive illum Armeniis aluerunt gramina campis                          5
      turbidus Argaea seu nive lavit Halys,
    sanguineo virides morsu vexare smaragdos
      et Tyrio dignum terga rubere toro.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 275


XLVII. (LXXIII.)

_On a Gift to a Horse._

Happy steed, whose good fortune it is to obey the directing hand of a
god and to be guided by a sacred bit. Whether on the plains of Spain
the wind tossed thy mane in sport, or thou didst bathe in the melted
snows of Mount Argaeus, in some fertile valley of Cappadocia, or thou
didst scour the rich pasture-lands of Thessaly in wind-swift course,
receive this royal harness and, tossing thy proud mane, fleck with foam
the bridle studded with emeralds. Arch thy haughty neck beneath its
collar of pearls; let cloth of purple and gold clothe thy shoulders and
a belt of many colours worked by Serena’s chaste hands pass beneath
thy belly. ’Tis an ornament worthy the kings of Persia. Such is her
motherly love that to enhance her son-in-law’s glory she disdains not
to embroider the very harness of his horses.


XLVIII. (LXX.)

_On a Strap embroidered by Serena for Honorius’ Horse._

Receive at a sister’s hand a small gift, revered prince, a gift
embroidered by her own hand; the bridle of thy champing steed is of
gold, his head-harness studded with jewels; use now this strap to pass
beneath his belly. Whether his home was the grassy plain of Armenia, or
by the Halys, swollen with the melted snows of Mount Argaeus wherein he
was wont to bathe, he well deserves an emerald-encrusted bit to champ
in his blood-flecked mouth and cloth of Tyrian purple to adorn his
back. How

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                              Page 276

    o quantum formae sibi conscius erigit armos
      spargit et excussis colla superba iubis!                          10
    augescit brevitas doni pietate Serenae,
      quae volucres etiam fratribus ornat equos.


XLIX. (XLVI.)

_De torpedine._

      Quis non indomitam dirae torpedinis artem
    audiit et merito signatas nomine vires?
      Illa quidem mollis segnique obnixa natatu
    reptat et attritis vix languida serpit harenis.
    sed latus armavit gelido natura veneno,                              5
    et frigus, quo cuncta rigent animata[113], medullis
    miscuit et proprias hiemes per viscera duxit.
    naturam iuvat ipsa dolis et conscia sortis
    utitur ingenio longeque extenta per algas
    attactu confisa subit. inmobilis haeret:                            10
    qui tetigere iacent. successu laeta resurgit
    et vivos impune ferox depascitur artus.
      Si quando vestita cibis incautior aera
    hauserit et curvis frenari senserit hamis,
    non fugit aut vano conatur vellere morsu,                           15
    sed proprius nigrae iungit se callida saetae
    et meminit captiva sui longeque per undas
    pigra venenatis effundit flamina venis.
    per saetam vis alta meat fluctusque relinquit
    absentem victura virum: metuendus ab imis                           20

    [113] MSS. _armata_ which Birt prints, suggesting _afflata_ in a note;
    _animata_ is Scaliger’s emendation.

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                              Page 277

conscious he is of his own beauty as he steps high and shakes his
flowing mane over his proud neck! The slight nature of the present is
dignified by the affection of Serena who for her brothers decks even
their swift steeds.


XLIX. (XLVI.)

_The Electric Ray._

Who has not heard of the invincible skill of the dread torpedo and of
the powers that win it its name?

Its body is soft and its motion slow. Scarcely does it mark the sand
o’er which it crawls so sluggishly. But nature has armed its flanks
with a numbing poison and mingled with its marrow chill to freeze
all living creatures, hiding as it were its own winter in its heart.
The fish seconds nature’s efforts with its own guilefulness; knowing
its own capabilities, it employs cunning, and trusting to its power
of touch lies stretched full length among the seaweed and so attacks
its prey. It stays motionless; all that have touched it lie benumbed.
Then, when success has crowned its efforts, it springs up and greedily
devours without fear the living limbs of its victim.

Should it carelessly swallow a piece of bait that hides a hook of
bronze and feel the pull of the jagged barbs, it does not swim away
nor seek to free itself by vainly biting at the line; but artfully
approaches the dark line and, though a prisoner, forgets not its skill,
emitting from its poisonous veins an effluence which spreads far and
wide through the water. The poison’s bane leaves the sea and creeps up
the line; it will soon prove too much for the distant fisherman.

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                              Page 278

    emicat horror aquis et pendula fila secutus
    transit harundineos arcano frigore nodos
    victricemque ligat concreto sanguine dextram.
    damnosum piscator onus praedamque rebellem
    iactat et amissa redit exarmatus avena.                             25


L. (LXXVII.)

_In Iacobum magistrum equitum._

    Per cineres Pauli, per cani limina Petri,
      ne laceres versus, dux Iacobe, meos.
    sic tua pro clipeo defendat pectora Thomas
      et comes ad bellum Bartholomaeus eat;
    sic ope sanctorum non barbarus inruat Alpes,                         5
      sic tibi det vires sancta Susanna suas;
    sic quicumque ferox gelidum transnaverit Histrum,
      mergatur volucres ceu Pharaonis equi;
    sic Geticas ultrix feriat romphaea catervas
      Romanasque regat prospera Thecla manus;                           10
    sic tibi det magnum moriens conviva triumphum
      atque tuam vincant dolia fusa sitim;
    sic numquam hostili maculetur sanguine dextra:
      ne laceres versus, dux Iacobe, meos.


LI. (LXVIII.)

_In sphaeram Archimedis._

    Iuppiter in parvo cum cerneret aethera vitro,
      risit et ad superos talia dicta dedit:

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                              Page 279

The dread paralysing force rises above the water’s level and climbing
up the drooping line, passes down the jointed rod, and congeals,
e’er he is even aware of it, the blood of the fisherman’s victorious
hand. He casts away his dangerous burden and lets go his rebel prey,
returning home disarmed without his rod.


L. (LXXVII.)

_Against James Commander of the Cavalry._[114]

By the ashes of S. Paul and the shrine of revered S. Peter, do not pull
my verses to pieces, General James. So may S. Thomas prove a buckler to
protect thy breast and S. Bartholomew bear thee company to the wars; so
may the blessed saints prevent the barbarians from crossing the Alps
and Suzanna[115] endow thee with her strength; so, should any savage
foe seek to swim across the Danube, let him be drowned therein like the
swift chariots of Pharaoh; so may an avenging javelin strike the Getic
hordes and the favour of Thecla[116] guide the armies of Rome; so may
thy guests dying in their efforts to out-drink thee assure thy board
its triumph of hospitality and the broached casks o’ercome thy thirst;
so may thy hand ne’er be red with an enemy’s blood--do not, I say, pull
my verses to pieces.


LI. (LXVIII.)

_Archimedes’ Sphere._

When Jove looked down and saw the heavens figured in a sphere of glass
he laughed and said to

    [114] Nothing is known of this man. Birt dates the poem 401.

    [115] Suzanna was martyred under Diocletian.

    [116] There were several virgins, saints, and martyrs of this name.
    Claudian probably means the proto-martyr of Iconium, the friend and
    companion of S. Paul.

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                              Page 280

    “hucine mortalis progressa potentia curae?
      iam meus in fragili luditur orbe labor?
    iura poli rerumque fidem legesque deorum                             5
      ecce Syracusius transtulit arte senex.
    inclusus variis famulatur spiritus astris
      et vivum certis motibus urget opus.
    percurrit proprium mentitus Signifer annum,
      et simulata novo Cynthia mense redit,                             10
    iamque suum volvens audax industria mundum
      gaudet et humana sidera mente regit.
    quid falso insontem tonitru Salmonea miror?
      aemula naturae parva reperta manus.”


LII. (XXXVII.)

_Gigantomachia._

      Terra parens quondam caelestibus invida regnis
    Titanumque simul crebros miserata dolores
    omnia monstrifero complebat Tartara fetu
    invisum genitura nefas Phlegramque retexit
    tanta prole tumens et in aethera protulit hostes.                    5
    fit sonus: erumpunt crebri necdumque creati
    iam dextras in bella parant superosque lacessunt
    stridula volventes gemino vestigia lapsu.
    pallescunt subito stellae flectitque rubentes
    Phoebus equos docuitque timor revocare meatus.                      10
    Oceanum petit Arctos inocciduique Triones
    occasum didicere pati. tum fervida natos
    talibus hortatur genetrix in proelia dictis:
      “O pubes domitura deos, quodcumque videtis,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 281

the other gods: “Has the power of mortal effort gone so far? Is my
handiwork now mimicked in a fragile globe? An old man of Syracuse has
imitated on earth the laws of the heavens, the order of nature, and the
ordinances of the gods. Some hidden influence within the sphere directs
the various courses of the stars and actuates the lifelike mass with
definite motions. A false zodiac runs through a year of its own, and a
toy moon waxes and wanes month by month. Now bold invention rejoices to
make its own heaven revolve and sets the stars in motion by human wit.
Why should I take umbrage at harmless Salmoneus and his mock thunder?
Here the feeble hand of man has proved Nature’s rival.”


LII. (XXXVII.)

_The Battle of the Giants._

Once upon a time mother Earth, jealous of the heavenly kingdoms and in
pity for the ceaseless woes of the Titans, filled all Tartarus with
a monster brood, thus giving birth to that which proved a very bane.
Her womb swollen with this monstrous birth she opened Phlegra’s side
and brought forth foes against heaven. With a noise as of thunder they
burst forth in profusion and, scarce born, prepare their hands for war,
as with twofold trail[117] they writhe their hissing course. Suddenly
the stars grow pale, Phoebus turns his rosy steeds and, impelled by
fear, retraces his steps. The Bear takes refuge in the Ocean, and the
unsetting Triones learned to endure setting. Then their angry mother
stirred up her sons to war with words such as these: “Children, ye
shall conquer

    [117] They were twiform; _cf._ l. 81.

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                              Page 282

    pugnando dabitur; praestat victoria mundum.                         15
    sentiet ille meas tandem Saturnius iras,
    cognoscet, quid Terra potest, si viribus ullis
    vincor, si Cybele nobis meliora creavit!
    cur nullus Telluris honos? cur semper acerbis
    me damnis urgere solet? quae forma nocendi                          20
    defuit? hinc volucrem vivo sub pectore pascit
    infelix Scythica fixus convalle Prometheus;
    hinc Atlantis apex flammantia pondera fulcit
    et per canitiem glacies asperrima durat.
    quid dicam Tityon, cuius sub vulture saevo                          25
    viscera nascuntur gravibus certantia poenis?
    sed vos, o tandem veniens exercitus ultor,
    solvite Titanas vinclis, defendite matrem.
    sunt freta, sunt montes: nostris ne parcite membris;
    in Iovis exitium telum non esse recuso.                             30
    ite, precor, miscete polum, rescindite turres
    sidereas. rapiat fulmen sceptrumque Typhoeus;
    Enceladi iussis mare serviat; alter habenas
    Aurorae pro Sole regat: te Delphica laurus
    stringet, Porphyrion, Cirrhaeaque templa tenebis.”                  35
      His ubi consiliis animos elusit inanes,
    iam credunt vicisse deos mediisque revinctum
    Neptunum traxisse fretis; hic sternere Martem
    cogitat, hic Phoebi laceros divellere crines;
    hic sibi promittit Venerem speratque Dianae                         40
    coniugium castamque cupit violare Minervam.

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                              Page 283

heaven: all that ye see is the prize of victory; win, and the universe
is yours. At last shall Saturn’s son feel the weight of my wrath; shall
recognize Earth’s power. What! can any force conquer me? Has Cybele
born sons superior to mine? Why has Earth no honour? Why is she ever
condemned to bitter loss? Has any form of injury passed me by? There
hangs luckless Prometheus in yon Scythian vale, feeding the vulture
on his living breast; yonder, Atlas supports the weight of the starry
heavens upon his head, and his grey hair is frozen stiff with cruel
cold. What need to tell of Tityus whose liver is ever renewed beneath
the savage vulture’s beak, to contend with his heavy punishment? Up,
army of avengers, the hour is come at last, free the Titans from
their chains; defend your mother. Here are seas and mountains, limbs
of my body, but care not for that. Use them as weapons. Never would
I hesitate to be a weapon for the destruction of Jove. Go forth and
conquer; throw heaven into confusion, tear down the towers of the sky.
Let Typhoeus seize the thunderbolt and the sceptre; Enceladus, rule
the sea, and another in place of the sun guide the reins of dawn’s
coursers. Porphyrion, wreathe thou thy head with Delphi’s laurel and
take Cirrha for thy sanctuary.”

This exhortation filled their minds with vain hopes. They think
themselves already victors o’er the gods, imagine they have thrown
Neptune into chains and dragged him a prisoner from Ocean’s bed. One
thinks to lay Mars low, one to tear Phoebus’ locks from his head; one
assigns Venus to himself, another anticipates in thought his marriage
with Diana, and another is all aflame to do violence to chaste Minerva.

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                              Page 284

      Interea superos praenuntia convocat Iris.
    qui fluvios, qui stagna colunt, cinguntur et ipsi
    auxilio Manes; nec te, Proserpina, longe
    umbrosae tenuere fores; rex ipse silentum                           45
    Lethaeo vehitur curru lucemque timentes
    insolitam mirantur equi trepidoque volatu
    spissas caeruleis tenebras e naribus efflant.
    ac velut hostilis cum machina terruit urbem,
    undique concurrunt arcem defendere cives:                           50
    haud secus omnigenis coeuntia numina turmis
    ad patris venere domos. tum Iuppiter infit:
      “O numquam peritura cohors, o debita semper
    caelo progenies, nullis obnoxia fatis:
    cernitis ut Tellus nostrum coniuret in orbem                        55
    prole nova dederitque alios interrita partus?
    ergo, quot dederit natos, tot funera matri
    reddamus: longo maneat per saecula luctu
    tanto pro numero paribus damnata sepulcris.”
      Iam tuba nimborum sonuit, iam signa ruendi                        60
    his Aether, his Terra dedit confusaque rursus
    pro domino Natura timet. discrimina rerum
    miscet turba potens: nunc insula deserit aequor,
    nunc scopuli latuere mari. quot litora restant
    nuda! quot antiquas mutarunt flumina ripas!                         65
    hic rotat Haemonium praeduris viribus Oeten;
    hic iuga conixus manibus Pangaea coruscat;
    hunc armat glacialis Athos; hoc Ossa movente
    tollitur; his Rhodopen Hebri cum fonte revellit

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                              Page 285

Meanwhile Iris, messenger of the gods, summons the immortal council.
There come the deities of river and lake; the very ghosts were there
in heaven’s defence. Hell’s shady portals could not hold Proserpine
afar; the king of the silent himself advances in his Lethaean chariot.
His horses fear the light which hitherto their astonished eyes have
never looked upon and, swerving this way and that, they breathe forth
thick vapour from their soot-black nostrils. As, when an enemy’s
siege-engine affrights a town, the citizens run together from all sides
to defend their citadel, so gods of all shapes and forms came together
to protect their father’s home. Them Jove thus addressed: “Deathless
army, whose dwelling-place is, and must ever be, the sky, ye whom no
adverse fortune can ever harm, mark ye how Earth with her new children
conspires against our kingdom and undismayed has given birth to another
brood? Wherefore, for all the sons she bore, let us give back to their
mother as many dead; let her mourning last through the ages as she
weeps by as many graves as she now has children.”

The clouds echo the blast of heaven’s trumpets; on this side Heaven,
on that Earth, sounds the attack. Once more Nature is thrown into
confusion and fears for her lord. The puissant company of the giants
confounds all differences between things; islands abandon the deep;
mountains lie hidden in the sea. Many a river is left dry or has
altered its ancient course. One giant brandishes Thessalian Oeta in his
mighty hand, another gathers all his strength and hurls Pangaeus at the
foe, Athos with his snows arms another; this one roots up Ossa, that
tears out Rhodope and Hebrus’ source, dividing the

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                              Page 286

    et socias truncavit aquas summaque levatus                          70
    rupe Giganteos umeros inrorat Enipeus:
    subsedit patulis Tellus sine culmine campis
    in natos divisa suos.
                            Horrendus ubique
    it fragor et pugnae spatium discriminat aër.
    primus terrificum Mavors non segnis in agmen                        75
    Odrysios impellit equos, quibus ille Gelonos
    sive Getas turbare solet: splendentior igni
    aureus ardescit clipeus, galeamque nitentes
    adrexere iubae. tum concitus ense Pelorum
    transigit adverso, femorum qua fine volutus                         80
    duplex semifero conectitur ilibus anguis,
    atque uno ternas animas interficit ictu.
    tum super insultans avidus languentia curru
    membra terit multumque rotae sparsere cruorem.
      Occurrit pro fratre Mimas Lemnumque calentem                      85
    cum lare Vulcani spumantibus eruit undis
    et prope torsisset, si non Mavortia cuspis
    ante revelato cerebrum fudisset ab ore.
    ille, viro toto moriens, serpentibus imis
    vivit adhuc stridore ferox et parte rebelli                         90
    victorem post fata petit.
                              Tritonia virgo
    prosilit ostendens rutila cum Gorgone pectus;
    adspectu contenta suo non utitur hasta
    (nam satis est vidisse semel) primumque furentem
    longius in faciem saxi Pallanta reformat.                           95
    ille procul subitis fixus sine vulnere nodis
    ut se letifero sensit durescere visu
    (et steterat iam paene lapis) “quo vertimur?” inquit,

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                              Page 287

waters that before were one; Enipeus, gathered up with its beetling
crags, scatters its waters over yon giant’s shoulders: robbed of her
mountains Earth sank into level plains, parted among her own sons.

On all sides a horrid din resounds and only the air divides the
rival armies. First impetuous Mars urges against the horrid band his
Thracian steeds that oft have driven in rout Getae or Geloni. Brighter
than flame shines his golden shield, high towers the crest of his
gleaming helmet. Dashing into the fray he first encounters Pelorus and
transfixes him with his sword, where about the groin the two-bodied
serpent unites with his own giant form, and thus with one blow puts an
end to three lives. Exulting in his victory he drives his chariot over
the dying giant’s limbs till the wheels ran red with blood.

Mimas ran forward to avenge his brother. He had torn Lemnos and with it
Vulcan’s fiery house from out the foaming main, and was on the point of
hurling it when Mars’ javelin prevented him, scattering the brain from
his shattered skull. What was giant in him died, but the serpent legs
still lived, and, hissing vengeance, sought to attack the victor after
Mimas’ death.

Minerva rushed forward presenting her breast whereon glittered the
Gorgon’s head. The sight of this, she knew, was enough: she needed
not to use a spear. One look sufficed. Pallas drew no nearer, rage as
he might, for he was the first to be changed into a rock. When, at a
distance from his foe, without a wound, he found himself rooted to the
ground, and felt the murderous visage turn him, little by little, to
stone (and all but stone he was) he called out, “What is happening to
me? What

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                              Page 288

    “quae serpit per membra silex? qui torpor inertem
    marmorea me peste ligat?” vix pauca locutus,                       100
    quod timuit, iam totus erat; saevusque Damastor,
    ad depellendos iaculum cum quaereret hostes,
    germani rigidum misit pro rupe cadaver.
      Hic vero interitum fratris miratus Echion
    inscius, auctorem dum vult temptare nocendo,                       105
    te, Dea, respexit, solam quam cernere nulli
    bis licuit. meruit sublata audacia poenas
    et didicit cum morte deam. sed turbidus ira
    Palleneus, oculis aversa tuentibus atrox,
    ingreditur caecasque manus in Pallada tendit.                      110
    hunc mucrone ferit dea comminus; ac simul angues
    Gorgoneo riguere gelu corpusque per unum
    pars moritur ferro, partes periere videndo.
      Ecce autem medium spiris delapsus in aequor
    Porphyrion trepidam conatur rumpere Delon,                         115
    scilicet ad superos ut torqueat improbus axes.
    horruit Aegaeus; stagnantibus exilit antris
    longaevo cum patre Thetis desertaque mansit
    regia Neptuni famulis veneranda profundis.
    exclamant placidae Cynthi de vertice Nymphae,                      120
    Nymphae, quae rudibus Phoebum docuere sagittis
    errantes agitare feras primumque gementi
    Latonae struxere torum, cum lumina caeli
    parturiens geminis ornaret fetibus orbem.
    implorat Paeana suum conterrita Delos                              125
    auxiliumque rogat: “si te gratissima fudit

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                              Page 289

is this ice that creeps o’er all my limbs? What is this numbness that
holds me prisoner in these marble fetters?” Scarce had he uttered these
few words when he was what he feared, and savage Damastor, seeking a
weapon wherewith to repel the foe, hurled at them in place of a rock
his brother’s stony corpse.

Then Echion, marvelling, all ignorant, at his brother’s death, even as
he seeks to assail the author of the deed, turned his gaze upon thee,
goddess, whom alone no man may see twice. Beaten audacity well deserved
its punishment and in death he learned to know the goddess. But
Palleneus, mad with anger, turning his eyes aside, rushed at Minerva,
striking at her with undirected sword. Nigh at hand the goddess smote
him with her sword, and at the same time the snakes froze at the
Gorgon’s glance, so that of one body a part was killed by a weapon and
a part by a mere look.

Impious Porphyrion, carried by his serpents into the middle of the sea,
tries to uproot trembling Delos, wishing to hurl it at the sky. The
Aegean was affrighted; Thetis and her agèd sire fled from their watery
caverns; the palace of Neptune, regarded with awe by all the denizens
of the deep, lay deserted. The summit of Cynthus rang with the cries
of the gentle nymphs who had taught Phoebus’ unpractised hand to shoot
at the wandering beasts with his bow, they who first had prepared the
bed for weeping Latona when, in labour with the lights of heaven, she
blessed the world with twin offspring. Delos in terror called her lord
Phoebus to help her and begged him for aid. “In remembrance of the

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 290

    in nostros Latona sinus, succurre precanti.
    en iterum convulsa feror.”

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 291

time when Latona entrusted thine infant life to my care, help me who
thus call upon thee. Behold, once more they seek to uproot me.…”[118]

    [118] Like the _De raptu Proserpinae_, the _Gigantomachia_ was
    probably never completed. S. Jerome in his commentary on Isaiah
    (viii. 27) quotes from a _Gigantomachia_, not giving the name of
    its author. It is possible that the lines, which do not occur in
    Claudian’s poem as we possess it, belong to a final portion which
    has been lost. But it is more likely that they come from some other
    poet’s work and that the abrupt end of Claudian’s poem is due not
    to loss but to the poet’s sudden death.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 292




DE RAPTU PROSERPINAE

LIBRI PRIMI


PRAEFATIO

(XXXII.)

    Inventa secuit primus qui nave profundum
      et rudibus remis sollicitavit aquas,
    qui dubiis ausus committere flatibus alnum
      quas natura negat praebuit arte vias:
    tranquillis primum trepidus se credidit undis                        5
      litora securo tramite summa legens;
    mox longos temptare sinus et linquere terras
      et leni coepit pandere vela Noto.
    ast ubi paulatim praeceps audacia crevit
      cordaque languentem dedidicere metum,                             10
    iam vagus inrumpit pelagus caelumque secutus
      Aegaeas hiemes Ioniumque domat.


LIBER PRIMUS

(XXXIII.)

      Inferni raptoris equos adflataque curru
    sidera Taenario caligantesque profundae
    Iunonis thalamos audaci promere cantu

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 293




RAPE OF PROSERPINE

BOOK I


PREFACE

(XXXII.)

He who first made a ship and clave therewith the deep, troubling the
waters with roughly hewn oars, who first dared trust his alder-bark to
the uncertain winds and who by his skill devised a way forbidden of
nature, fearfully at the first essayed smooth seas, hugging the shore
in an unadventurous course. But soon he began to attempt the crossing
of broad bays, to leave the land and spread his canvas to the gentle
south wind; and, as little by little his growing courage led him on,
and as his heart forgot numbing fear, sailing now at large, he burst
upon the open sea and, with the signs of heaven to guide him, passed
triumphant through the storms of the Aegean and the Ionian main.


BOOK I

(XXXIII.)

My full heart bids me boldly sing the horses of the ravisher from the
underworld and the stars darkened by the shadow of his infernal chariot

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 294

    mens congesta iubet. gressus removete profani.
    iam furor humanos nostro de pectore sensus                           5
    expulit et totum spirant praecordia Phoebum;
    iam mihi cernuntur trepidis delubra moveri
    sedibus et claram dispergere limina lucem
    adventum testata dei; iam magnus ab imis
    auditur fremitus terris templumque remugit                          10
    Cecropium sanctasque faces extollit Eleusis.
    angues Triptolemi strident et squamea curvis
    colla levant attrita iugis lapsuque sereno
    erecti roseas tendunt ad carmina cristas.
    ecce procul ternis Hecate variata figuris                           15
    exoritur, levisque simul procedit Iacchus
    crinali florens hedera, quem Parthica velat
    tigris et auratos in nodum colligit ungues:
    ebria Maeonius firmat vestigia thyrsus.
      Di, quibus innumerum vacui famulatur Averni                       20
    vulgus iners, opibus quorum donatur avaris
    quidquid in orbe perit, quos Styx liventibus ambit
    interfusa vadis et quos fumantia torquens
    aequora gurgitibus Phlegethon perlustrat anhelis--
    vos mihi sacrarum penetralia pandite rerum                          25
    et vestri secreta poli: qua lampade Ditem
    flexit Amor; quo ducta ferox Proserpina raptu
    possedit dotale Chaos quantasque per oras
    sollicito genetrix erraverit anxia cursu;
    unde datae populis fruges et glande relicta                         30
    cesserit inventis Dodonia quercus aristis.
      Dux Erebi quondam tumidas exarsit in iras

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 295

and the gloomy chambers of the queen of Hell. Come not nigh, ye
uninitiate. Now has divine madness driven all mortal thoughts from my
breast, and my heart is filled with Phoebus’ inspiration; now see I
the shrine reel and its foundations totter while the threshold glows
with radiant light telling that the god is at hand. And now I hear a
loud din from the depths of the earth, the temple of Cecrops re-echoes
and Eleusis waves its holy torches. The hissing snakes of Triptolemus
raise their scaly necks chafed by the curving collar, and, uptowering
as they glide smoothly along, stretch forth their rosy crests towards
the chant. See from afar rises Hecate with her three various heads and
with her comes forth Iacchus smooth of skin, his temples crowned with
ivy. There clothes him the pelt of a Parthian tiger, its gilded claws
knotted together, and the Lydian thyrsus guides his drunken footsteps.

Ye gods, whom the numberless host of the dead serves in ghostly
Avernus, into whose greedy treasury is paid all that perishes upon
earth, ye whose fields the pale streams of intertwining Styx surround,
while Phlegethon, his rapids tossed in spray, flows through them with
steaming eddies--do you unfold for me the mysteries of your sacred
story and the secrets of your world. Say with what torch the god of
love overcame Dis, and tell how Proserpine was stolen away in her
maiden pride to win Chaos as a dower; and how through many lands Ceres,
sore troubled, pursued her anxious search; whence corn was given to
man whereby he laid aside his acorn food, and the new-found ear made
useless Dodona’s oaks.

Once on a time the lord of Erebus blazed forth

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 296

    proelia moturus superis, quod solus egeret
    conubiis sterilesque diu consumeret annos
    impatiens nescire torum nullasque mariti                            35
    inlecebras nec dulce patris cognoscere nomen.
    iam quaecumque latent ferali monstra barathro
    in turmas aciemque ruunt contraque Tonantem
    coniurant Furiae, crinitaque sontibus hydris
    Tesiphone quatiens infausto lumine pinum                            40
    armatos ad castra vocat pallentia Manes,
    paene reluctatis iterum pugnantia rebus
    rupissent elementa fidem penitusque revulso
    carcere laxatis pubes Titania vinclis
    vidisset caeleste iubar rursusque cruentus                          45
    Aegaeon positis aucto de corpore nodis
    obvia centeno vexasset fulmina motu.
      Sed Parcae vetuere minas orbique timentes
    ante pedes soliumque ducis fudere severam
    canitiem genibusque suas cum supplice fletu                         50
    admovere manus, quarum sub iure tenentur
    omnia, quae seriem fatorum pollice ducunt
    longaque ferratis evolvunt saecula fusis.
    prima fero Lachesis clamabat talia regi
    incultas dispersa comas:
                             “O maxime noctis                           55
    arbiter umbrarumque potens, cui nostra laborant
    stamina, qui finem cunctis et semina praebes
    nascendique vices alterna morte rependis,
    qui vitam letumque regis (nam quidquid ubique
    gignit materies, hoc te donante creatur                             60
    debeturque tibi certisque ambagibus aevi

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 297

in swelling anger, threatening war upon the gods, because he alone
was unwed and had long wasted the years in childless state, brooking
no longer to lack the joys of wedlock and a husband’s happiness nor
ever to know the dear name of father. Now all the monsters that lurk
in Hell’s abyss rush together in warlike bands, and the Furies bind
themselves with an oath against the Thunderer. Tisiphone, the bloody
snakes clustering on her head, shakes the lurid pine-torch and summons
to the ghostly camp the armèd shades. Almost had the elements, once
more at war with reluctant nature, broken their bond; the Titan brood,
their deep prison-house thrown open and their fetters cast off, had
again seen heaven’s light; and once more bloody Aegaeon, bursting
the knotted ropes that bound his huge form, had warred against the
thunderbolts of Jove with hundred-handed blows.

But the dread Fates brought these threats to naught, and, fearing for
the world, gravely laid their hoary locks before the feet and throne
of the lord of Hell, and with suppliant tears touched his knees with
their hands--those hands beneath whose rule are all things set, whose
thumbs twist the thread of fate and spin the long ages with their iron
spindles. First Lachesis, her hair unkempt and disordered, thus called
out upon the cruel king: “Great lord of night, ruler over the shades,
thou at whose command our threads are spun, who appointest the end
and origin of all things and ordainest the alternation of birth and
destruction; arbiter thou of life and death--for whatsoever thing comes
anywhere into being it is by thy gift that it is created and owes its
life to thee, and after a fixed

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 298

    rursus corporeos animae mittuntur in artus):
    ne pete firmatas pacis dissolvere leges,
    quas dedimus nevitque colus, neu foedera fratrum
    civili converte tuba. cur impia tollis                              65
    signa? quid incestis aperis Titanibus auras?
    posce Iovem; dabitur coniunx.”
                            Vix illa[119]: pepercit
    erubuitque preces, animusque relanguit atrox
    quamvis indocilis flecti: ceu turbine rauco
    cum gravis armatur Boreas glacieque nivali                          70
    hispidus et Getica concretus grandine pennas
    disrumpit pelagus, silvas camposque sonoro
    flamine rapturus; si forte adversus aënos
    Aeolus obiecit postes, vanescit inanis
    impetus et fractae redeunt in claustra procellae.                   75

    Tunc Maia genitum, qui fervida dicta reportet,
    imperat acciri. Cyllenius adstitit ales
    somniferam quatiens virgam tectusque galero.
    ipse rudi fultus solio nigraque verendus
    maiestate sedet: squalent inmania foedo                             80
    sceptra situ; sublime caput maestissima nubes
    asperat et dirae riget inclementia formae;
    terrorem dolor augebat. tunc talia celso
    ore tonat (tremefacta silent dicente tyranno
    atria: latratum triplicem compescuit ingens                         85
    ianitor et presso lacrimarum fonte resedit
    Cocytos tacitisque Acheron obmutuit undis
    et Phlegethonteae requierunt murmura ripae):

    [119] _illa_ ς; Birt reads _ille_ with the better MSS.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 299

cycle of years them sendest souls once more into mortal bodies--seek
not to break the stablished treaty of peace which our distaffs have
spun and given thee, and overturn not in civil war the compact fixed
’twixt thee and thy two brothers. Why raisest thou unrighteous
standards of war? Why freest the foul band of Titans to the open air?
Ask of Jove; he will give thee a wife.”

Scarce had she spoken when Pluto stopped, shamed by her prayer, and his
grim spirit grew mild though little wont to be curbed: even so great
Boreas, armed with strident blasts and tempestuous with congealed snow,
his wings all frozen with Getic hail as he seeks battle, threatens to
overwhelm the sea, the woods, and the fields with sounding storm; but
should Aeolus chance to bar against him the brazen doors idly his fury
dies away and his storms retire baulked to their prison-house.

Then he bids summon Mercury, the son of Maia, that he may carry these
flaming words to Jove. Straightway the wingèd god of Cyllene stands at
his side shaking his sleepy wand, his herald cap upon his head. Pluto
himself sits propped on his rugged throne, awful in funereal majesty;
foul with age-long dust is his mighty sceptre; boding clouds make
grim his lofty head; unpitying is the stiffness of his dread shape;
rage heightened the terror of his aspect. Then with uplifted head he
thunders forth these words, while, as the tyrant speaks, his halls
tremble and are still; the massy hound, guardian of the gate, restrains
the barking of his triple head, and Cocytus sinks back repressing his
fount of tears; Acheron is dumb with silent wave, and the banks of
Phlegethon cease their murmuring.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 300

      “Atlantis Tegeaee nepos, commune profundis
    et superis numen, qui fas per limen utrumque                        90
    solus habes geminoque facis commercia mundo,
    i celer et proscinde Notos et iussa superbo
    redde Iovi: ‘tantumne tibi, saevissime frater,
    in me iuris erit? sic nobis noxia vires
    cum caelo Fortuna tulit? num robur et arma                          95
    perdidimus, si rapta dies? an forte iacentes
    ignavosque putas, quod non Cyclopia tela
    stringimus aut vanas tonitru deludimus auras?
    nonne satis visum, grati quod luminis expers
    tertia supremae patior dispendia sortis                            100
    informesque plagas, cum te laetissimus ornet
    Signifer et vario cingant splendore Triones;
    sed thalamis etiam prohibes? Nereia glauco
    Neptunum gremio complectitur Amphitrite;
    te consanguineo recipit post fulmina fessum                        105
    Iuno sinu. quid enim narrem Latonia furta,
    quid Cererem magnamque Themin? tibi tanta creandi
    copia; te felix natorum turba coronat.
    ast ego deserta maerens inglorius aula
    implacidas nullo solabor pignore curas?                            110
    non adeo toleranda quies. primordia testor
    noctis et horrendae stagna intemerata paludis:
    si dicto parere negas, patefacta ciebo
    Tartara, Saturni veteres laxabo catenas,
    obducam tenebris solem, compage soluta                             115
    lucidus umbroso miscebitur axis Averno.’”

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 301

“Grandchild of Atlas, Arcadian-born, deity that sharest hell
and heaven, thou who alone hast the right to cross either threshold,
and art the intermediary between the two worlds, go swiftly, cleave
the winds, and bear these my behests to proud Jove. ‘Hast thou, cruel
brother, such complete authority over me? Did injurious fortune rob
me at once of power and light? Because day was reft from me, lost I
therefore strength and weapons? Thinkest thou me humble and cowed
because I hurl not bolts forged by the Cyclops and fool not the empty
air with thunder? Is it not enough that deprived of the pleasant light
of day I submit to the ill-fortune of the third and final choice and
these hideous realms, whilst thee the starry heavens adorn and the
Wain surrounds with twinkling brilliance--must thou also forbid our
marriage? Amphitrite, daughter of Nereus, holds Neptune in her sea-grey
embrace; Juno, thy sister and thy wife, takes thee to her bosom when
wearied thou layest aside thy thunderbolts. What need to tell of thy
secret love for Lato or Ceres or great Themis? How manifold a hope of
offspring was thine! Now a crowd of happy children surrounds thee. And
shall I in this empty palace, sans joy, sans fame, know no child’s
love to still instant care? I will not brook so dull a life. I swear
by elemental night and the unexplored shallows of the Stygian lake, if
thou refuse to hearken to my word I will throw open Hell and call forth
her monsters, will break Saturn’s old chains, and shroud the sun in
darkness. The framework of the world shall be loosened and the shining
heavens mingle with Avernus’ shades.’”

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 302

      Vix ea fatus erat, iam nuntius astra tenebat.
    audierat mandata Pater secumque volutat
    diversos ducens animos, quae tale sequatur
    coniugium Stygiosque velit pro sole recessus.                      120
    certa requirenti tandem sententia sedit.
      Hennaeae Cereri proles optata virebat
    unica, nec tribuit subolem Lucina secundam
    fessaque post primos haeserunt viscera partus
    infecunda quidem; sed cunctis altior extat                         125
    matribus et numeri damnum Proserpina pensat.
    hanc fovet, hanc sequitur: vitulam non blandius ambit
    torva parens, pedibus quae nondum proterit arva
    nec nova lunatae curvavit germina frontis.
    iam matura toro plenis adoleverat annis                            130
    virginitas, tenerum iam pronuba flamma pudorem
    sollicitat mixtaque tremit formidine votum.
    personat aula procis: pariter pro virgine certant
    Mars clipeo melior, Phoebus praestantior arcu;
    Mars donat Rhodopen, Phoebus largitur Amyclas                      135
    et Delon Clariosque lares; hinc aemula Iuno,
    hinc poscit Latona nurum. despexit utrumque
    flava Ceres raptusque timens (heu caeca futuri!)
    commendat Siculis furtim sua gaudia terris
    [infidis Laribus natam commisit alendam,                           140
    aethera deseruit Siculasque relegat in oras][120]
    ingenio confisa loci.
                          Trinacria quondam
    Italiae pars iuncta fuit; sed pontus et aestus
    mutavere situm. rupit confinia Nereus
    victor et abscissos interluit aequore montes,                      145

    [120] _Heinsius bracketed these lines as spurious, and neither D nor V
    has l. 140._

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 303

Scarce had he spoken when his messenger trod the stars. The Father
heard the message and, communing with himself, debated long who would
dare such a marriage, who would wish to exchange the sun for the caves
of Styx. He would fain decide and at length his fixed purpose grew.

Ceres, whose temple is at Henna, had but one youthful daughter, a child
long prayed for; for the goddess of birth granted no second offspring,
and her womb, exhausted by that first labour, became unfruitful. Yet
prouder is the mother above all mothers, and Proserpine such as to
take the place of many. Her mother’s care and darling is she; not
more lovingly does the fierce mother cow tend her calf that cannot
as yet scamper over the fields and whose growing horns curve not yet
moonwise over her forehead. As the years were fulfilled she had grown
a maiden ripe for marriage, and thoughts of the torch of wedlock stir
her girlish modesty, but while she longs for a husband she yet fears
to plight troth. The voice of suitors is heard throughout the palace;
two gods woo the maiden, Mars, more skilled with the shield, and
Phoebus, the mightier bowman. Mars offers Rhodope, Phoebus would give
Amyclae, and Delos and his temple at Claros; in rivalry Juno and Latona
claim her for a son’s wife. But golden-haired Ceres disdains both,
and fearing lest her daughter should be stolen away (how blind to the
future!) secretly entrusts her jewel to the land of Sicily, confident
in the safe nature of this hiding-place.

Trinacria was once a part of Italy but sea and tide changed the face of
the land. Victorious Nereus brake his bounds and interflowed the cleft
mountains

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 304

    parvaque cognatas prohibent discrimina terras.
    nunc illam socia ruptam tellure trisulcam
    opposuit Natura mari: caput inde Pachyni
    respuit Ionias praetentis rupibus iras;
    hinc latrat Gaetula Thetis Lilybaeaque pulsat                      150
    brachia consurgens; hinc indignata teneri
    concutit obiectum rabies Tyrrhena Pelorum.
    in medio scopulis se porrigit Aetna perustis,
    Aetna Giganteos numquam tacitura triumphos,
    Enceladi bustum, qui saucia terga revinctus                        155
    spirat inexhaustum flagranti vulnere sulphur
    et, quotiens detractat onus cervice rebelli
    in laevum dextrumque latus, tunc insula fundo
    vellitur et dubiae nutant cum moenibus urbes.

    Aetnaeos apices solo cognoscere visu,                              160
    non aditu temptare licet, pars cetera frondet
    arboribus; teritur nullo cultore cacumen.
    nunc movet indigenas nimbos piceaque gravatum
    foedat nube diem, nunc motibus astra lacessit
    terrificis damnisque suis incendia nutrit.                         165
    sed quamvis nimio fervens exuberet aestu,
    scit nivibus servare fidem pariterque favillis
    durescit glacies tanti secura vaporis,
    arcano defensa gelu, fumoque fideli
    lambit contiguas innoxia flamma pruinas.                           170
    quae scopulos tormenta rotant? quae tanta cavernas

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 305

with his waves whereby a narrow channel now separates these kindred
lands. Nature now thrusts out into the sea the three-cornered island,
cut off from the mainland to which it once belonged. At one extremity
the promontory of Pachynum hurls back with jutting crags the furious
waves of the Ionian main, round another roars the African sea that
rises and beats upon the curving harbour of Lilybaeum, at the third the
raging Tyrrhenian flood, impatient of restraint, shakes the obstacle
of Cape Pelorus. In the midst of the island rise the charred cliffs of
Aetna, eloquent monument of Jove’s victory over the Giants, the tomb of
Enceladus, whose bound and bruised body breathes forth endless sulphur
clouds from its burning wounds. Whene’er his rebellious shoulders
shift their burden to the right or left, the island is shaken from its
foundations and the walls of tottering cities sway this way and that.

The peaks of Aetna thou must know by sight alone; to them no foot may
approach. The rest is clothed with foliage but the summit no husbandman
tills. Now it sends forth native smoke and with pitch-black cloud
darkens and oppresses the day, now with awful stirrings it threatens
the stars and feeds its flame with the dread fruit of its own body. But
though it boils and bursts forth with such great heat yet it knows how
to observe a truce with the snow, and together with glowing ashes the
ice grows hard, protected from the great heat and secured by indwelling
cold, so that the harmless flame licks the neighbouring frost with
breath that keeps its compact. What huge engine hurls those rocks; what
vast force piles rock on

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 306

    vis glomerat? quo fonte ruit Vulcanius amnis?
    sive quod obicibus discurrens ventus opertis
    offenso rimosa furit per saxa meatu,
    dum scrutatur iter, libertatemque reposcens                        175
    putria multivagis populatur flatibus antra;
    seu mare sulphurei ductum per viscera montis
    oppressis ignescit aquis et pondera librat.
      Hic ubi servandum mater fidissima pignus
    abdidit, ad Phrygios tendit secura penates                         180
    turrigeramque petit Cybelen sinuosa draconum
    membra regens, volucri qui pervia nubila tractu
    signant et placidis umectant frena venenis:
    frontem crista tegit; pingunt maculosa virentes
    terga notae; rutilum squamis intermicat aurum.                     185
    nunc spiris Zephyros tranant; nunc arva volatu
    inferiore secant, cano rota pulvere labens
    sulcatam fecundat humum: flavescit aristis
    orbita; surgentes condunt vestigia fruges;
    vestit iter comitata seges.
                               Iam linquitur Aetna                     190
    totaque decrescit refugo Trinacria visu.
    heu quotiens praesaga mali violavit oborto
    rore genas! quotiens oculos ad tecta retorsit
    talia voce movens: “salve, gratissima tellus,
    quam nos praetulimus caelo, tibi gaudia nostri                     195
    sanguinis et caros uteri commendo labores.
    praemia digna manent: nullos patiere ligones
    et nullo rigidi versabere vomeris ictu.
    sponte tuus florebit ager; cessante iuvenco

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 307

rock? Whence flows forth that fiery stream? Whether it be that the
wind, forcing its way past hidden barriers, rages amid the fissured
rocks that seek to bar its passage and, seeking a way of escape, sweeps
the crumbling caverns with its wandering blasts in its bid for freedom,
or that the sea, flowing in through the bowels of the sulphurous
mountain, bursts into flame when its waters are compressed and casts up
great rocks, I know not.

When the loving mother had entrusted her charge to the secret keeping
of Henna she went freed from care to visit tower-crowned Cybele in her
Phrygian home, driving a car drawn by twining serpents which cleave the
pervious clouds on their wingèd course and fleck the bit with harmless
poison. Their heads are crested and spots of green mottle their backs
while sparkling gold glints amid their scales. Now they swim circling
through the air, now they skim the fields with low-driven course.
The passing wheels sow the plough-land with golden grain and their
track grows yellow with corn. Sprouting stalks cover their traces and
attendant crops clothe the path of the goddess.

Now is left behind Aetna, and all Sicily sinks lessening into the
distance. Ah, how often, foreknowing of coming ill, did she mar her
cheek with welling tears; how often look back upon her home with words
like these: “Be happy, dear land, dearer than heaven to me, into thy
safe keeping I commend my daughter, my sole joy, loved fruit of my
labour. No despicable reward shall be thine, for thou shalt suffer no
hoe nor shall the cruel iron of the ploughshare know thy soil. Untilled
thy fields shall bear fruit, and though thine oxen plough not, a richer

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 308

    ditior oblatas mirabitur incola messes.”                           200
    sic ait et fulvis tetigit serpentibus Idam.
      Hic sedes augusta deae templique colendi
    relligiosa silex, densis quam pinus obumbrat
    frondibus et nulla lucos agitante procella
    stridula coniferis modulatur carmina ramis.                        205
    terribiles intus thiasi vesanaque mixto
    concentu delubra gemunt; ululatibus Ide
    bacchatur; timidas inclinant Gargara silvas.
    postquam visa Ceres, mugitum tympana frenant;
    conticuere chori; Corybas non impulit ensem;                       210
    non buxus, non aera sonant blandasque leones
    summisere iubas. adytis gavisa Cybebe
    exilit et pronas intendit ad oscula turres.
      Viderat haec dudum summa speculatus ab arce
    Iuppiter ac Veneri mentis penetralia pandit:                       215
    “curarum, Cytherea, tibi secreta fatebor.
    candida Tartareo nuptum Proserpina regi
    iam pridem decreta dari: sic Atropos urget;
    sic cecinit longaeva Themis. nunc matre remota
    rem peragi tempus. fines invade Sicanos                            220
    et Cereris prolem patulis inludere campis,
    crastina puniceos cum lux detexerit ortus,
    coge tuis armata dolis, quibus urere cuncta,
    me quoque, saepe soles, cur ultima regna quiescunt?
    nulla sit inmunis regio nullumque sub umbris                       225
    pectus inaccensum Veneri. iam tristis Erinys

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 309

husbandman shall view with wonder the self-sown harvest.” So spake she
and reached Mount Ida, drawn by her yellow serpents.

Here is the queenly seat of the goddess and in her holy temple the
sacred statue, o’ershadowed by the thick leaves of the pine wood which,
though no storm wind shakes the grove, gives forth creakings with its
cone-bearing branches. Within are the dread bands of the initiate with
whose wild chantings the shrine rings; Ida is loud with howlings and
Gargarus bends his woods in fear. As soon as Ceres appears the drums
restrain their rattle; the choirs are silent and the Corybantes stay
the flourish of their knives. Pipes and cymbals are still, and the
lions sink their manes in greeting. Cybele[121] rejoicing runs forth
from the shrine and bends her towered head to kiss her guest.

Long had Jove seen this, watching from his lofty seat, and to Venus
he thus enfolded the secrets of his heart: “Goddess of Cythera, I
will impart to thee my hidden troubles; long ago I decided that fair
Proserpine should be given in marriage to the lord of Hell; such is
Atropos’ bidding, such old Themis’ prophecy. Now that her mother has
left her is the time for action. Do thou visit the confines of Sicily,
and armed with thy wiles, lead Ceres’ daughter to sport in the level
meads what time to-morrow’s light has unfolded the rosy dawn; employ
those arts with which thou art wont to inflame all things, often even
myself. Why should the nether kingdoms know not love? Let no land be
free and no breast even amid the shades unfired by Venus. At last let
the gloomy Fury

    [121] Cybele and Cybebe are alternative forms in Latin. The normal
    English form is Cybele.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 310

    sentiat ardores; Acheron Ditisque severi
    ferrea lascivis mollescant corda sagittis.”
      Accelerat praecepta Venus; iussuque parentis
    Pallas et inflexo quae terret Maenala cornu                        230
    addunt se comites. divino semita gressu
    claruit, augurium qualis laturus iniquum
    praepes sanguineo dilabitur igne cometes
    prodigiale rubens: non illum navita tuto,
    non impune vident populi, sed crine minaci                         235
    nuntiat aut ratibus ventos aut urbibus hostes.
    devenere locum, Cereris quo tecta nitebant
    Cyclopum firmata manu: stant ardua ferro
    moenia, ferrati postes, inmensaque nectit
    claustra chalybs. nullum tanto sudore Pyragmon                     240
    nec Steropes construxit opus: non talibus umquam
    spiravere Notis animae nec flumine tanto
    incoctum maduit lassa cervice metallum.
    atria cingit ebur; trabibus solidatur aënis
    culmen et in celsas surgunt electra columnas.                      245
      Ipsa domum tenero mulcens Proserpina cantu
    inrita texebat rediturae munera matri.
    hic elementorum seriem sedesque paternas
    insignibat acu, veterem qua lege tumultum
    discrevit Natura parens et semina iustis                           250
    discessere locis: quidquid leve, fertur in altum;
    in medium graviora cadunt; incanduit aër;
    legit flamma polum; fluxit mare; terra pependit.
    nec color unus erat: stellas accendit in auro,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 311

feel the sting of passion and Acheron and the steely heart of stern Dis
grow tender with love’s arrows.”

Venus hastes to do his bidding; and at their sire’s behest there join
her Pallas and Diana whose bent bow affrights all Maenalus’ slopes.
Neath her divine feet the path shone bright, even as a comet, fraught
with augury of ill, falls headlong, a glowing portent of blood-red
fire; no sailor may look on it and live, no people view it but to their
destruction; the message of its threatening tail is storm to ships and
an enemy’s attack to cities. They reached the place where shone Ceres’
palace, firm-built by the Cyclops’ hands; up tower the iron walls,
iron stand the gates, and steel bars secure the massy doors. Neither
Pyragmon nor Steropes e’er builded a work with toil so great as that,
nor ever did bellows breathe forth such blasts nor the molten mass of
metal flow in a stream so deep that the very furnaces were weary of
heating it. The hall was walled with ivory; the roof strengthened with
beams of bronze and supported by lofty columns of electron.

Proserpine herself, soothing the house with sweet song, was sewing
all in vain a gift against her mother’s return. In this cloth she
embroidered with her needle the concourse of atoms and the dwelling of
the Father of the gods and pictured how mother Nature ordered elemental
chaos, and how the first principles of things sprang apart, each to his
proper place--those that were light being born aloft, the heavier ones
falling to a centre. The air grew bright and fire chose the pole as its
seat. Here flowed the sea; there hung the earth suspended. Many were
the colours she employed, tricking the stars with gold and flooding the
sea

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 312

    ostro fundit aquas, attollit litora gemmis                         255
    filaque mentitos iamiam caelantia fluctus
    arte tument: credas inlidi cautibus algam
    et raucum bibulis inserpere murmur harenis.
    addit quinque plagas: mediam subtegmine rubro
    obsessam fervore notat; squalebat inustus                          260
    limes et adsiduo sitiebant stamina sole.
    vitales utrimque duas, quas mitis oberrat
    temperies habitanda viris; in fine supremo
    torpentes traxit geminas brumaque perenni
    foedat et aeterno contristat frigore telas.                        265
    nec non et patrui pingit sacraria Ditis
    fatalesque sibi Manes; nec defuit omen,
    praescia nam subitis maduerunt fletibus ora.
      Coeperat et vitreis summo iam margine texti
    Oceanum sinuare vadis; sed cardine verso                           270
    cernit adesse deas imperfectumque laborem
    deserit et niveos infecit purpura vultus
    per liquidas succensa genas castaeque pudoris
    inluxere faces: non sic decus ardet eburnum,
    Lydia Sidonio quod femina tinxerit ostro.                          275
      Merserat unda diem; sparso nox umida somno
    languida caeruleis invexerat otia bigis,
    iamque viam Pluto superas molitur ad auras
    germani monitu. torvos invisa iugales
    Allecto temone ligat, qui pascua mandunt                           280
    Cocyti pratisque Erebi nigrantibus errant

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 313

with purple. The shore she embossed with precious stones and cunningly
employed raised threadwork to imitate the swelling billows. You might
have thought you saw the seaweed dashed against the rocks and heard
the murmur of the hissing waves flooding up the thirsty sands. Five
zones she added; indicating that the centre was the torrid zone by
embroidering it with red yarn: its desert confines are parched and
the thread she used was dried by the sun’s unfailing heat. On either
side lay the two habitable zones, blessed with a mild climate fit for
the life of man. At the top and bottom she set the two frozen zones,
portraying eternal winter’s horror in her weaving and the gloom of
never-ceasing cold. Further she embroidered the accursèd seat of her
uncle, Dis, and the nether gods, her destined fellows. Nor did the omen
pass unmarked, for prophetic of the future her cheeks grew wet with
sudden tears.

Next she began to trace Ocean’s glassy shallows at the tapestry’s
farthest edge, but at that moment the doors opened, she saw the
goddesses enter, and left her work unfinished. A glowing blush that
mantled to her clear cheeks suffused her fair countenance and lit the
torches of stainless purity. Not so beautiful even the glow of ivory
which a Lydian maid has stained with Sidon’s scarlet dye.

Now the sun was dipped in Ocean and misty night scattering sleep had
brought for mortals ease and leisure in her black two-horsed chariot;
when Pluto, warned by his brother, made his way to the upper air. The
dread fury Allecto yokes to the chariot-pole the two fierce pairs of
steeds that grace Cocytus’ banks and roam the dark meads of Erebus,
and,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 314

    stagnaque tranquillae potantes marcida Lethes
    aegra soporatis spumant oblivia linguis:
    Orphnaeus crudele micans Aethonque sagitta
    ocior et Stygii sublimis gloria Nycteus                            285
    armenti Ditisque nota signatus Alastor.
    stabant ante fores iuncti saevumque fremebant
    crastina venturae spectantes gaudia praedae.


LIBRI SECUNDI

PRAEFATIO

(XXXIV.)

    Otia sopitis ageret cum cantibus Orpheus
      neglectumque diu deposuisset opus,
    lugebant erepta sibi solacia Nymphae,
      quaerebant dulces flumina maesta modos.
    saeva feris natura redit metuensque leonem                           5
      implorat citharae vacca tacentis opem.
    illius et duri flevere silentia montes
      silvaque Bistoniam saepe secuta chelyn.

    Sed postquam Inachiis Alcides missus ab Argis
      Thracia pacifero contigit arva pede                               10
    diraque sanguinei vertit praesaepia regis
      et Diomedeos gramine pavit equos,
    tunc patriae festo laetatus tempore vates
      desuetae repetit fila canora lyrae

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 315

drinking the rotting pools of sluggish Lethe, let dark oblivion drip
from their slumbrous lips--Orphnaeus, savage and fleet, Aethon, swifter
than an arrow, great Nyctaeus, proud glory of Hell’s steeds, and
Alastor, branded with the mark of Dis. These stood harnessed before the
door and savagely champed the bit all eager for the morrow’s enjoyment
of their destined booty.


BOOK II

PREFACE

(XXXIV.)

When Orpheus sought repose and, lulling his song to sleep, had long
laid aside his neglected task, the Nymphs complained that their joy had
been reft from them and the sad rivers mourned the loss of his tuneful
lays. Nature’s savagery returned and the heifer in terror of the
lion looked in vain for help from the now voiceless lyre. The rugged
mountains lamented his silence and the woods that had so often followed
his Thracian lute.

But after that Hercules, setting forth from Inachian Argos, reached
the plains of Thrace on his mission of salvation, and destroying the
stables of Diomede, fed the horses of the bloody tyrant on grass, then
it was that the poet, o’erjoyed at his country’s happy fate, took up
once more the tuneful strings of his lute long laid aside, and touching
its

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 316

    et resides levi modulatus pectine nervos                            15
      pollice festivo nobile duxit ebur.
    vix auditus erat: venti frenantur et undae,
      pigrior adstrictis torpuit Hebrus aquis,
    porrexit Rhodope sitientes carmina rupes,
      excussit gelidas pronior Ossa nives;                              20
    ardua nudato descendit populus Haemo
      et comitem quercum pinus amica trahit,
    Cirrhaeasque dei quamvis despexerit artes,
      Orpheis laurus vocibus acta venit.
    securum blandi leporem fovere Molossi                               25
      vicinumque lupo praebuit agna latus.
    concordes varia ludunt cum tigride dammae;
      Massylam cervi non timuere iubam.

    Ille novercales stimulos actusque canebat
      Herculis et forti monstra subacta manu,                           30
    quod timidae matri pressos ostenderit angues
      intrepidusque fero riserit ore puer:
    “te neque Dictaeas quatiens mugitibus urbes
      taurus nec Stygii terruit ira canis,
    non leo sidereos caeli rediturus ad axes,                           35
      non Erymanthei gloria montis aper.
    solvis Amazonios cinctus, Stymphalidas arcu
      adpetis, occiduo ducis ab orbe greges
    tergeminique ducis numerosos deicis artus
      et totiens uno victor ab hoste redis.                             40
    non cadere Antaeo, non crescere profuit hydrae;
      nec cervam volucres eripuere pedes.
    Caci flamma perit; rubuit Busiride Nilus;
      prostratis maduit nubigenis Pholoë.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 317

idle chords with the smooth quill, plied the famed ivory with festal
fingers. Scarce had they heard him when the winds and waves were
stilled; Hebrus flowed more sluggishly with reluctant stream, Rhodope
stretched out her rocks all eager for the song, and Ossa, his summit
less exalted, shook off his coat of snow. The tall poplar and the pine,
accompanied by the oak, left the slopes of treeless Haemus, and even
the laurel came, allured by the voice of Orpheus, though erstwhile it
had despised Apollo’s art. Molossian dogs fawned playfully on fearless
hares, and the lamb made room for the wolf by her side. Does sported in
amity with the striped tiger and hinds had no fear of the lion’s mane.

He sang the stings of a step-dame’s ire[122] and the deeds of Hercules,
the monsters overcome by his strong right arm; how while yet a child
he had shown the strangled snakes to his terrified mother, and had
laughed, fearlessly scorning such dangers. “Thee nor the bull that
shook with his bellowing the cities of Crete alarmed, nor the savagery
of the hound of Hell; thee not the lion, soon to become a constellation
in the heavens, nor the wild boar that brought renown to Erymanthus’
height. Thou hast stripped the Amazons of their girdles, shot with thy
bow the birds of Stymphalus, and driven home the cattle of the western
clime. Thou hast o’erthrown the many limbs of the triple-headed
monster and returned thrice victorious from a single foe. Vain the
falls of Antaeus, vain the sprouting of the Hydra’s new heads. Its
winged feet availed not to save Diana’s deer from thy hand. Cacus’
flames were quenched and Nile ran rich with Busiris’ blood. Pholoë’s
slopes reeked with the slaughter of the

    [122] Juno is called the stepmother of Hercules.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 318

    te Libyci stupuere sinus, te maxima Tethys                          45
      horruit, imposito cum premerere polo:
    firmior Herculea mundus cervice pependit;
      lustrarunt umeros Phoebus et astra tuos.”

    Thracius haec vates. sed tu Tirynthius alter,
      Florentine, mihi: tu mea plectra moves                            50
    antraque Musarum longo torpentia somno
      excutis et placidos ducis in orbe choros.


LIBER SECUNDUS

(XXXV.)

      Impulit Ionios praemisso lumine fluctus
    nondum pura dies; tremulis vibratur in undis
    ardor et errantes ludunt per caerula flammae.
    iamque audax animi fidaeque oblita parentis
    fraude Dionaea riguos Proserpina saltus                              5
    (sic Parcae iussere) petit. ter cardine verso
    praesagum cecinere fores; ter conscia fati
    flebile terrificis gemuit mugitibus Aetna,
    nullis illa tamen monstris nulloque tenetur
    prodigio. comites gressum iunxere sorores.                          10
      Prima dolo gaudens et tanto concita voto
    it Venus et raptus metitur corde futuros,
    iam dirum flexura chaos, iam Dite subacto
    ingenti famulos Manes ductura triumpho.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 319

cloud-born Centaurs. Thee the curving shore of Libya held in awe; thee
the mighty Ocean gazed at in amaze when thou laidst the world’s bulk on
thy back; on the neck of Hercules the heaven was poised more surely;
the sun and stars coursed over thy shoulders.”

So sang the Thracian bard. But thou, Florentinus,[123] art a second
Hercules to me. ’Tis thou causest my quill to stir, ’tis thou
disturbest the Muses’ cavern long plunged in sleep and leadest their
gentle bands in the dance.


BOOK II

(XXXV.)

Not yet had bright day with herald beams struck the waves of the Ionian
main; the light of dawn shimmered on the waters and the straying
brilliance flickered over the deep blue sea. And now bold Proserpine,
forgetful of her mother’s jealous care and tempted by the wiles of
Venus, seeks the stream-fed vale. Such was the Fates’ decree. Thrice
did the doors sound a warning note as the hinges turned; thrice did
prophetic Aetna rumble mournfully with awful thunders. But her can no
portent, no omen detain. The sister goddesses bore her company.

First goes Venus exulting in her trickery and inspired by her great
mission. In her heart she takes account of the coming rape; soon she
will rule dread Chaos, soon, Dis once subdued, she will lead the
subject ghosts. Her hair, parted into many

    [123] See Introduction, p. xiv.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 320

    illi multifidos crinis sinuatur in orbes                            15
    Idalia divisus acu; sudata marito
    fibula purpureos gemma suspendit amictus.
      Candida Parrhasii post hanc regina Lycaei
    et Pandionias quae cuspide protegit arces,
    utraque virgo, ruunt: haec tristibus aspera bellis,                 20
    haec metuenda feris. Tritonia casside fulva
    caelatum Typhona gerit, qui summa peremptus
    ima parte viget, moriens et parte superstes;
    hastaque terribili surgens per nubila ferro
    instar habet silvae; tantum stridentia colla                        25
    Gorgonis obtentu pallae fulgentis inumbrat.
    at Triviae lenis species et multus in ore
    frater erat, Phoebique genas et lumina Phoebi
    esse putes, solusque dabat discrimina sexus.
    brachia nuda nitent; levibus proiecerat auris                       30
    indociles errare comas, arcuque remisso
    otia nervus agit; pendent post terga sagittae.
    crispatur gemino vestis Gortynia cinctu
    poplite fusa tenus, motoque in stamine Delos
    errat et aurato trahitur circumflua ponto.                          35
      Quas inter Cereris proles, nunc gloria matris,
    mox dolor, aequali tendit per gramina passu
    nec membris nec honore minor potuitque videri
    Pallas, si clipeum ferret, si spicula, Phoebe.
    collectae tereti nodantur iaspide vestes.                           40
    pectinis ingenio numquam felicior artis
    contigit eventus; nulli sic consona telae
    fila nec in tantum veri duxere figuras.
    hic Hyperionio Solem de semine nasci

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 321

locks, is braided round her head and secured by a Cyprian pin, and a
brooch cunningly fabricated by her spouse Vulcan supports her cloak
thick studded with purple jewels.

Behind her hasten Diana, fair queen of Arcadian Lycaeus, and Pallas
who, with her spear, protects the citadel of Athens--virgins both;
Pallas, cruel goddess of war, Diana bane of wild creatures. On her
burnished helmet the Triton-born goddess wore a carved figure of
Typhon, the upper part of his body lifeless, the lower limbs yet
writhing, part dead, part quick. Her terrible spear, piercing the
clouds as she brandished it, resembled a tree; only the Gorgon’s
hissing neck she hid in the spread of her glittering cloak. But mild
was Diana’s gaze and very like her brother looked she; Phoebus’ own
one had thought her cheeks and eyes, her sex alone disclosed the
difference. Her shining arms were bare, her straying locks fluttered
in the gentle breeze, and the chord of her unstrung bow hung idle, her
arrows slung behind her back. Her Cretan tunic, gathered with girdles
twain, flows down to her knees, and on her waving dress Delos wanders
and stretches surrounded by a golden sea.

Between the two Ceres’ child, now her mother’s pride, so soon to be
her sorrow, treads the grass with equal pace, their equal, too, in
stature and beauty; Pallas you might have thought her, had she carried
a shield, Diana, if a javelin. A brooch of polished jasper secured her
girded dress. Never did art give happier issue to the shuttle’s skill;
never was cloth so beautifully made nor embroidery so lifelike. In it
she had worked the birth of the sun from the seed of Hyperion, the
birth, too, of the moon,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 322

    fecerat et pariter, forma sed dispare, Lunam,                       45
    aurorae noctisque duces; cunabula Tethys
    praebet et infantes gremio solatur anhelos
    caeruleusque sinus roseis radiatur alumnis.
    invalidum dextro portat Titana lacerto
    nondum luce gravem nec pubescentibus alte                           50
    cristatum radiis: primo clementior aevo
    fingitur et tenerum vagitu despuit ignem.
    laeva parte soror vitrei libamina potat
    uberis et parvo signatur tempora cornu.
      Tali luxuriat cultu. comitantur euntem                            55
    Naides et socia stipant utrimque caterva,
    quae fontes, Crinise, tuos et saxa rotantem
    Pantagiam nomenque Gelam qui praebuit urbi
    concelebrant, quas pigra vado Camerina palustri,
    quas Arethusaei latices, quas advena nutrit                         60
    Alpheus; Cyane totum supereminet agmen:
    qualis Amazonidum peltis exultat aduncis
    pulchra cohors, quotiens Arcton populata virago
    Hippolyte niveas ducit post proelia turmas,
    seu flavos stravere Getas seu forte rigentem                        65
    Thermodontiaca Tanaim fregere securi;
    aut quales referunt Baccho sollemnia Nymphae
    Maeoniae, quas Hermus alit, ripasque paternas
    percurrunt auro madidae: laetatur in antro
    amnis et undantem declinat prodigus urnam.                          70
      Viderat herboso sacrum de vertice vulgus
    Henna parens florum curvaque in valle sedentem

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 323

though diverse was her shape--of sun and moon that bring the dawning
and the night. Tethys affords them a cradle and soothes in her bosom
their infant sobs; the rosy light of her foster-children irradiates her
dark blue plains. On her right shoulder she carried the infant Titan,
too young as yet to vex with his light, and his encircling beams not
grown; he is pictured as more gentle in those tender years, and from
his mouth issues a soft flame that accompanies his infant cries. The
moon, his sister, carried on Tethys’ left shoulder, sucks the milk of
that bright breast, her forehead marked with a little horn.

Such is the wonder of Proserpine’s dress. The Naiads bear her company
and on either side crowd around her, those who haunt thy streams,
Crinisus, and Pantagia’s rocky torrent and Gela’s who gives his name
to the city; those whom Camerina, the unmoved, nurtures in her shallow
marshes, whose home is Arethusa’s flood or the stream of Alpheus, her
foreign lover; tallest of their company is Cyane. So move they as the
beauteous band of Amazons, brandishing their moon-shaped shields what
time the maiden warrior Hippolyte, after laying waste the regions of
the north, leads home her fair army after battle, whether they have
o’erthrown the yellow-haired Getae or cloven frozen Tanais with the
axe of their native Thermodon; or as the Lydian Nymphs celebrate the
festivals of Bacchus--the Nymphs whose sire was Hermus along whose
banks they course, splashed with his golden waters: the river-god
rejoices in his cavern home and pours forth the flooding urn with
generous hand.

Henna, mother of blossoms, had espied the goddess’ company from her
grassy summit and thus addressed

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 324

    compellat Zephyrum: “pater o gratissime veris,
    qui mea lascivo regnas per prata meatu
    semper et adsiduis inroras flatibus annum,                          75
    respice Nympharum coetus et celsa Tonantis
    germina per nostros dignantia ludere campos.
    nunc adsis faveasque, precor; nunc omnia fetu
    pubescant virgulta velis, ut fertilis Hybla
    invideat vincique suos non abnuat hortos.                           80
    quidquid turiferis spirat Panchaia silvis,
    quidquid odoratus longe blanditur Hydaspes,
    quidquid ab extremis ales longaeva colonis
    colligit optato repetens exordia leto,[124]
    in venas disperge meas et flamine largo                             85
    rura fove. merear divino pollice carpi
    et nostris cupiant ornari numina sertis.”
      Dixerat; ille novo madidantes nectare pennas
    concutit et glaebas fecundo rore maritat,
    quaque volat vernus sequitur rubor; omnis in herbas
    turget humus medioque patent convexa sereno.                        91
    sanguineo splendore rosas, vaccinia nigro
    imbuit et dulci violas ferrugine pingit.
    Parthica quae tantis variantur cingula gemmis
    regales vinctura sinus? quae vellera tantum                         95
    ditibus Assyrii spumis fucantur aëni?
    non tales volucer pandit Iunonius alas,
    nec sic innumeros arcu mutante colores
    incipiens redimitur hiems, cum tramite flexo
    semita discretis interviret umida nimbis.                          100

    Forma loci superat flores: curvata tumore
    parvo planities et mollibus edita clivis
    creverat in collem; vivo de pumice fontes

    [124] _leto_ Heinsius; Birt _saeclo_ (FDWB1V1).

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 325

Zephyrus, lurking in the winding vale: “Gracious father of the spring,
thou who ever rulest over my meads with errant breeze and bringest
rain upon the summer lands with thine unceasing breath, behold this
company of Nymphs and Jove’s tall daughters who deign to sport them in
my meadows. Be present to bless, I pray. Grant that now all the trees
be thick with newly-grown fruit, that fertile Hybla may be jealous
and admit her paradise surpassed. All the sweet airs of Panchaea’s
incense-bearing woods, all the honied odours of Hydaspes’ distant
stream, all the spices which from furthest fields the long-lived
Phoenix gathers, seeking new birth from wished for death--spread thou
all these through my veins and with generous breath refresh my country.
May I be worthy to be plundered by divine fingers and goddesses seek to
be decked with my garlands.”

So spake she, and Zephyrus shook his wings adrip with fresh nectar and
drenches the ground with their life-giving dew. Wheresoe’er he flies
spring’s brilliance follows. The fields grow lush with verdure and
heaven’s dome shines cloudless above them. He paints the bright roses
red, the hyacinths blue and the sweet violets purple. What girdles of
Babylon, meet cincture of a royal breast, are adorned with such varied
jewels? What fleece so dyed in the rich juice of the murex where stand
the brazen towers of Tyre? Not the wings of Juno’s own bird display
such colouring. Not thus do the many-changing hues of the rainbow span
young winter’s sky when in curved arch its rainy path glows green amid
the parting clouds.

Even more lovely than the flowers is the country. The plain, with
gentle swell and gradual slopes, rose into a hill; issuing from the
living rock gushing

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 326

    roscida mobilibus lambebant gramina rivis,
    silvaque torrentes ramorum frigore soles                           105
    temperat et medio brumam sibi vindicat aestu:
    apta fretis abies, bellis accommoda cornus,
    quercus amica Iovi, tumulos tectura cupressus,
    ilex plena favis, venturi praescia laurus;
    fluctuat hic denso crispata cacumine buxus,                        110
    hic hederae serpunt, hic pampinus induit ulmos.
    haud procul inde lacus (Pergum dixere Sicani)
    panditur et nemorum frondoso margine cinctus
    vicinis pallescit aquis: admittit in altum
    cernentes oculos et late pervius umor                              115
    ducit inoffensos liquido sub flumine visus
    imaque perspicui prodit secreta profundi.
    [huc elapsa cohors gaudet per florida rura.][125]
      Hortatur Cytherea legant. “nunc ite, sorores,
    dum matutinis praesudat solibus aër,                               120
    dum meus umectat flaventes Lucifer agros
    roranti praevectus equo.” sic fata doloris
    carpit signa sui. varios tum cetera saltus
    invasere cohors: credas examina fundi
    Hyblaeum raptura thymum, cum cerea reges                           125
    castra movent fagique cava dimissus ab alvo
    mellifer electis exercitus obstrepit herbis.
    pratorum spoliatur honos: haec lilia fuscis
    intexit violis; hanc mollis amaracus ornat;
    haec graditur stellata rosis, haec alba ligustris.                 130
    te quoque, flebilibus maerens Hyacinthe figuris,

    [125] Written into F by a later hand. Doubtless an interpolation
    and as such erased in C. It anticipates the _saltus invasere
    cohors_ of 123.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 327

streams bedewed their grassy banks. With the shade of its branches a
wood tempers the sun’s fierce heat and at summer’s height makes for
itself the cold of winter. There grows the pine, useful for seafaring,
the cornel-tree for weapons of war, the oak, friendly to Jove, the
cypress, sentinel of graves, the holm filled with honeycombs, and the
laurel foreknowing of the future; here the box-tree waves its thick
crown of leaves, here creeps the ivy, here the vine clothes the elm.
Not far from here lies a lake called by the Sicani Pergus, girt with
a cincture of leafy woods close around its pallid waters. Deep down
therein the eye of whoso would can see, and the everywhere transparent
water invites an untrammelled gaze into its oozy depths and betrays the
uttermost secrets of its pellucid gulfs. [Hither came their company
well pleased with the flowery climb.]

Venus bids them gather flowers. “Come, sisters, while yet the morning
sun shines through the moist air, and while Lucifer, my harbinger
of dawn, yet drives his dewy steeds and waters the flower-bright
field.” So spake she and gathered the flower that testifies to her
own woe.[126] Her companions ranged the various vales. You could have
believed a swarm of bees was on the wing, eager to gather its sweetness
from Hyblaean thyme, where the king bees lead out their wax-housed
armies and the honey-bearing host, issuing from the beech-tree’s hollow
bole, buzzes around its favourite flowers. The meadows are despoiled
of their glory; this goddess weaves lilies with dark violets, another
decks herself with pliant marjoram, a third steps forth rose-crowned,
another wreathed with white privet. Thee also, Hyacinthus,

    [126] Traditionally said to be the anemone, which is supposed to have
    sprung up red from the spot where Adonis was killed by the boar.

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                              Page 328

    Narcissumque metunt, nunc inclita germina veris,
    praestantes olim pueros: tu natus Amyclis,
    hunc Helicon genuit; disci te perculit error,
    hunc fontis decepit amor; te fronte retusa                         135
    Delius, hunc fracta Cephisus harundine luget.
      Aestuat ante alias avido fervore legendi
    frugiferae spes una deae: nunc vimine texto
    ridentes calathos spoliis agrestibus implet;
    nunc sociat flores seseque ignara coronat,                         140
    augurium fatale tori. quin ipsa tubarum
    armorumque potens dextram, qua fortia turbat
    agmina, qua stabiles portas et moenia vellit,
    iam levibus laxat studiis hastamque reponit
    insuetisque docet galeam mitescere sertis;                         145
    ferratus lascivit apex horrorque recessit
    Martius et cristae pacato fulgure vernant.
    nec, quae Parthenium canibus scrutatur odorem,
    aspernata choros libertatemque comarum
    iniecta voluit tantum frenare corona.                              150
      Talia virgineo passim dum more geruntur,
    ecce repens mugire fragor, confligere turres
    pronaque vibratis radicibus oppida verti.
    causa latet; dubios agnovit sola tumultus
    diva Paphi mixtoque metu perterrita gaudet.                        155
    iamque per anfractus animarum rector opacos
    sub terris quaerebat iter gravibusque gementem

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 329

they gather, thy flower inscribed with woe, and Narcissus too--once
lovely boys, now the pride of flowering spring. Thou, Hyacinthus, wert
born at Amyclae, Narcissus was Helicon’s child; thee the errant discus
slew; him the amorous water-nymphs beguiled; for thee weeps Delos’ god
with sorrow-weighted brow; for him Cephisus with his broken reeds.

But beyond her fellows she, the one hope of the corn-bearing goddess,
burned with a fierce desire to gather flowers. Now she fills with the
spoil of the fields her laughing baskets, osier-woven; now she twines
a wreath of flowers and crowns herself therewith, little seeing in
this a foreshadowing of the marriage fate holds in store for her. E’en
Pallas herself, goddess of the trumpets and of the weapons of war,
devotes to gentler pursuits the hand wherewith she o’erwhelms the host
of battle and throws down stout gates and city walls. She lays aside
her spear and wreaths her helmet with soft flowers--strange aureole!
The iron peak is gay, o’ershadowed the fierce martial glint, and the
plumes, erstwhile levin bolts, now nod with blossoms. Nor does Diana,
who scours Mount Parthenius with her keen-scented hounds, disdain this
company but would fain bind her free-flowing tresses with a flowery
crown.

But while the maidens so disport themselves, wandering through the
fields, a sudden roar is heard, towers crash and towns, shaken to their
foundations, totter and fall. None knows whence comes the tumult;
Paphus’ goddess alone recognized the sound that set her companions in
amaze, and fear mixed with joy fills her heart. For now the king of
souls was pricking his way through the dim labyrinth of the underworld
and crushing Enceladus, groaning

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 330

    Enceladum calcabat equis: inmania findunt
    membra rotae pressaque Gigas cervice laborat
    Sicaniam cum Dite ferens temptatque moveri                         160
    debilis et fessis serpentibus impedit axem:
    fumida sulphureo praelabitur orbita dorso.
    ac velut occultus securum pergit in hostem
    miles et effossi subter fundamina campi
    transilit inclusos arcano limite muros                             165
    turbaque deceptas victrix erumpit in arces
    terrigenas imitata viros: sic tertius heres
    Saturni latebrosa vagis rimatur habenis
    devia, fraternum cupiens exire sub orbem.
    ianua nulla patet; prohibebant undique rupes                       170
    oppositae duraque deum compage tenebant:
    non tulit ille moras indignatusque trabali
    saxa ferit sceptro. Siculae sonuere cavernae;
    turbatur Lipare; stupuit fornace relicta
    Mulciber et trepidus deiecit fulmina Cyclops.                      175
    audiit et si quem glacies Alpina coërcet
    et qui te, Latiis nondum praecincte tropaeis
    Thybri, natat missamque Pado qui remigat alnum.
      Sic, cum Thessaliam scopulis inclusa teneret
    Peneo stagnante palus et mersa negaret                             180
    arva coli, trifida Neptunus cuspide montes
    impulit adversos: tunc forti saucius ictu
    dissiluit gelido vertex Ossaeus Olympo;
    carceribus laxantur aquae factoque meatu
    redduntur fluviusque mari tellusque colonis.                       185

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 331

beneath the weight of his massy steeds. His chariot-wheels severed the
monstrous limbs, and the giant struggles, bearing Sicily along with
Pluto on his burdened neck, and feebly essays to move and entangle the
wheels with his weary serpents; still o’er his blazing back passes
the smoking chariot. And as sappers seek to issue forth upon their
unsuspecting enemy and, following a minèd path beneath the foundations
of the tunnelled field, pass unmarked beyond the foe-invested walls
of the city to break out, a victorious party, into the citadel of the
outwitted enemy, seeming sprung from earth, even so Saturn’s third son
scours the devious darkness whithersoever his team hurries him, all
eager to come forth beneath his brother’s sky. No door lies open for
him; rocks bar his egress on every side and detain the god in their
escapeless prison. He brooked not the delay but wrathfully smote the
crags with his beam-like staff. Sicily’s caverns thundered, Lipare’s
isle was confounded, Vulcan left his forge in amaze and the Cyclops let
drop their thunderbolts in fear. The pent-up denizens of the frozen
Alps heard the uproar and he who then swam thy wave, father Tiber, thy
brows not as yet graced with the crown of Italy’s triumphs; there heard
it he who rows his bark down Padus’ stream.

So when the rock-encircled lake, ere Peneus’ wave rolled seaward,
covered all Thessaly and allowed not its submerged fields to be tilled,
Neptune smote the imprisoning mountain with his trident. Then did the
peak of Ossa, riven with the mighty blow, spring apart from snowy
Olympus; a passage was made and the waters were released, whereby the
sea won back her feeding streams and the husbandman his fields.

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                              Page 332

      Postquam victa manu duros Trinacria nexus
    solvit et inmenso late discessit hiatu,
    adparet subitus caelo timor; astra viarum
    mutavere fidem; vetito se proluit Arctos
    aequore; praecipitat pigrum formido Booten;                        190
    horruit Orion. audito palluit Atlas
    hinnitu: rutilos obscurat anhelitus axes
    discolor et longa solitos caligine pasci
    terruit orbis equos; pressis haesere lupatis
    attoniti meliore polo rursusque verendum                           195
    in chaos obliquo certant temone reverti.
    mox ubi pulsato senserunt verbera tergo
    et solem didicere pati, torrentius amne
    hiberno tortaque ruunt pernicius hasta:
    quantum non iaculum Parthi, non impetus Austri,                    200
    non leve sollicitae mentis discurrit acumen.
    sanguine frena calent; corrumpit spiritus auras
    letifer; infectae spumis vitiantur harenae.
      Diffugiunt Nymphae: rapitur Proserpina curru
    imploratque deas. iam Gorgonis ora revelat                         205
    Pallas et intento festinat Delia telo
    nec patruo cedunt: stimulat communis in arma
    virginitas crimenque feri raptoris acerbat.
    ille velut stabuli decus armentique iuvencam
    cum leo possedit nudataque viscera fodit                           210
    unguibus et rabiem totos exegit in armos:
    stat crassa turpis sanie nodosque iubarum
    excutit et viles pastorum despicit iras.
      “Ignavi domitor vulgi, deterrime fratrum,”

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 333

When Trinacria beneath Pluto’s stroke loosed her rocky bonds and yawned
wide with cavernous cleft, sudden fear seized upon the sky. The stars
deserted their accustomed courses; the Bear bathed him in forbidden
Ocean; terror hurried sluggish Boötes to his setting; Orion trembled.
Atlas paled as he heard the neighing coursers; their smoky breath
obscures the bright heavens and the sun’s orb affrighted them, so long
fed on darkness. They stood biting the curb astonied at the brighter
air, and struggle to turn the chariot and hurry back to dread Chaos.
But soon, when they felt the lash on their backs and learned to bear
the sun’s brightness, they gallop on more rapidly than a winter torrent
and more fleet than the hurtling spear; swifter than the Parthian’s
dart, the south wind’s fury or nimble thought of anxious mind. Their
bits are warm with blood, their death-bringing breath infects the air,
the polluted dust is poisoned with their foam.

The Nymphs fly in all directions; Proserpine is hurried away in the
chariot, imploring aid of the goddesses. Now Pallas unveils the
Gorgon’s head, Diana strings her bow and hastes to help. Neither yields
to her uncle’s violence; a common virginity compels them to fight and
enrages them at the crime of the fierce ravisher. Pluto is like a lion
when he has seized upon a heifer, the pride of the stall and the herd,
and has torn with his claws the defenceless flesh and has sated his
fury on all its limbs, and so stands all befouled with clotted blood
and shakes his tangled mane and scorns the shepherds’ feeble rage.

“Lord of the strengthless dead,” cries Pallas,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 334

    Pallas ait “quae te stimulis facibusque profanis                   215
    Eumenides movere? tua cur sede relicta
    audes Tartareis caelum incestare quadrigis?
    sunt tibi deformes Dirae, sunt altera Lethes
    numina, sunt tristes Furiae, te coniuge dignae.
    fratris linque domos, alienam desere sortem;                       220
    nocte tua contentus abi. quid viva sepultis
    admisces? nostrum quid proteris advena mundum?”
      Talia vociferans avidos transire minaci
    cornipedes umbone ferit clipeique retardat
    obice Gorgoneisque premens adsibilat hydris                        225
    praetentaque operit crista; libratur in ictum
    fraxinus et nigros inluminat obvia currus
    missaque paene foret, ni Iuppiter aethere summo
    pacificas rubri torsisset fulminis alas
    confessus socerum: nimbis hymenaeus hiulcis                        230
    intonat et testes firmant conubia flammae.
      Invitae cessere deae. compescuit arcum
    cum gemitu talesque dedit Latonia voces:
      “Sis memor o longumque vale. reverentia patris
    obstitit auxilio, nec nos defendere contra                         235
    possumus: imperio vinci maiore fatemur.
    in te coniurat genitor populoque silenti
    traderis, heu! cupidas non adspectura sorores
    aequalemque chorum. quae te fortuna supernis
    abstulit et tanto damnavit sidera luctu?                           240

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 335

“wickedest of thy brothers, what Furies have stirred thee with
their goads and accursed torches? Why hast thou left thy seat and how
darest thou pollute the upper world with thy hellish team? Thou hast
the hideous Curses, the other deities of Hell, the dread Furies--any
of them would be a worthy spouse for thee. Quit thy brother’s realm,
begone from the kingdom allotted to another. Get thee hence; let thine
own night suffice thee. Why mix the quick with the dead? Why treadest
thou our world, an unwelcome visitant?”

So exclaiming she smote with her threatening shield the horses who
sought to advance and barred their way with the bulk of her targe,
thrusting them back with the hissing snake-hair of Medusa’s head
and o’ershadowing them with its outstretched plumes. She poised for
throwing her beechen shaft whose radiance met and illumed Pluto’s black
chariot. Almost had she cast it had not Jove from heaven’s height
hurled his red thunderbolt on peaceful wings, acknowledging his new
son; mid the riven clouds thunders the marriage-paean and attesting
fires confirm the union.

All unwilling the goddesses yielded, and weeping Diana laid aside her
weapons and thus spake: “Fare well, a long farewell; forget us not.
Reverence for our sire forbade our help, and against his will we cannot
defend thee. We acknowledge defeat by a power greater than our own.
The Father hath conspired against thee and betrayed thee to the realms
of silence, no more, alas! to behold the sisters and companions who
crave sight of thee. What fate hath reft thee from the upper air and
condemned the heavens to so deep mourning? Now no more

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 336

    iam neque Partheniis innectere retia lustris
    nec pharetram gestare libet: securus ubique
    spumet aper saevique fremant impune leones.
    te iuga Taygeti, posito te Maenala flebunt
    venatu maestoque diu lugebere Cyntho.                              245
    Delphica quin etiam fratris delubra tacebunt.”
      Interea volucri fertur Proserpina curru
    caesariem diffusa Noto planctuque lacertos
    verberat et questus ad nubila tendit inanes:
      “Cur non torsisti manibus fabricata Cyclopum                     250
    in nos tela, pater? sic me crudelibus umbris
    tradere, sic toto placuit depellere mundo?
    nullane te flectit pietas nihilumque paternae
    mentis inest? tantas quo crimine movimus iras?
    non ego, cum rapido saeviret Phlegra tumultu,                      255
    signa deis adversa tuli; non robore nostro
    Ossa pruinosum vexit glacialis Olympum.
    quod conata nefas aut cuius conscia culpae
    exul ad inmanes Erebi detrudor hiatus?
    o fortunatas alii quascumque tulere                                260
    raptores! saltem communi sole fruuntur.
    sed mihi virginitas pariter caelumque negatur,
    eripitur cum luce pudor, terrisque relictis
    servitum Stygio ducor captiva tyranno.
    o male dilecti flores despectaque matris                           265
    consilia! o Veneris deprensae serius artes!
    mater, io! seu te Phrygiis in vallibus Idae
    Mygdonio buxus circumsonat horrida cantu,

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 337

can we rejoice to set Parthenius’ steep with nets nor wear the
quiver; at large as he lists let the wild boar, raven and the lion
roar savagely with none to say him nay. Thee, Taygetus’ crest, thee
Maenalus’ height shall weep, their hunting laid aside. Long shalt thou
be food for weeping on sorrowing Cynthus’ slopes. E’en my brother’s
shrine at Delphi shall speak no more.”

Meanwhile Proserpine is borne away in the winged car, her hair
streaming before the wind, beating her arms in lamentation and calling
in vain remonstrance to the clouds: “Why hast thou not hurled at me,
father, bolts forged by the Cyclops’ hands? Was this thy will to
deliver thy daughter to the cruel shades and drive her for ever from
this world? Does love move thee not at all? Hast thou nothing of a
father’s feeling? What ill deed of men has stirred such anger in thee?
When Phlegra raged with war’s madness I bore no standard against the
gods; ’twas through no strength of mine that ice-bound Ossa supported
frozen Olympus. For attempt of what crime, for complicity with what
guilt, am I thrust down in banishment to the bottomless pit of Hell?
Happy girls whom other ravishers have stolen; they at least enjoy the
general light of day, while I, together with my virginity, lose the air
of heaven; stolen from me alike is innocence and daylight. Needs must
I quit this world and be led a captive bride to serve Hell’s tyrant.
Ye flowers that I loved in so evil an hour, oh, why did I scorn my
mother’s warning? Too late did I detect the wiles of Venus. Mother,
my mother, whether in the vales of Phrygian Ida the dread pipe sounds
about thine ears with Lydian

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 338

    seu tu sanguineis ululantia Dindyma Gallis
    incolis et strictos Curetum respicis enses:                        270
    exitio succurre meo! compesce furentem!
    comprime ferales torvi praedonis habenas!”
      Talibus ille ferox dictis fletuque decoro
    vincitur et primi suspiria sensit amoris.
    tunc ferrugineo lacrimas deterget amictu                           275
    et placida maestum solatur voce dolorem:
      “Desine funestis animum, Proserpina, curis
    et vano vexare metu. maiora dabuntur
    sceptra nec indigni taedas patiere mariti.
    ille ego Saturni proles, cui machina rerum                         280
    servit et inmensum tendit per inane potestas.
    amissum ne crede diem: sunt altera nobis
    sidera, sunt orbes alii, lumenque videbis
    purius Elysiumque magis mirabere solem
    cultoresque pios; illic pretiosior aetas,                          285
    aurea progenies habitat, semperque tenemus
    quod superi meruere semel. nec mollia desunt
    prata tibi; Zephyris illic melioribus halant
    perpetui flores, quos nec tua protulit Henna.
    est etiam lucis arbor praedives opacis                             290
    fulgentes viridi ramos curvata metallo:
    haec tibi sacra datur fortunatumque tenebis
    autumnum et fulvis semper ditabere pomis.
    parva loquor: quidquid liquidus complectitur aër,
    quidquid alit tellus, quidquid maris aequora verrunt,              295
    quod fluvii volvunt, quod nutrivere paludes,
    cuncta tuis pariter cedent animalia regnis
    lunari subiecta globo, qui Septimus auras
    ambit et aeternis mortalia separat astris.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 339

strains, or thou hauntest mount Dindymus, ahowl with self-mutilated
Galli, and beholdest the naked swords of the Curetes, aid me in my
bitter need; frustrate Pluto’s mad lust and stay the funereal reins of
my fierce ravisher.”

Her words and those becoming tears mastered e’en that rude heart as
Pluto first learned to feel love’s longings. The tears he wiped away
with his murky cloak, quieting her sad grief with these soothing words:
“Cease, Proserpine, to vex thy heart with gloomy cares and causeless
fear. A prouder sceptre shall be thine, nor shalt thou face marriage
with a husband unworthy of thee. I am that scion of Saturn whose will
the framework of the world obeys, whose power stretches through the
limitless void. Think not thou hast lost the light of day; other stars
are mine and other courses; a purer light shalt thou see and wonder
rather at Elysium’s sun and blessed habitants. There a richer age, a
golden race has its home, and we possess for ever what men win but
once. Soft meads shall fail thee not, and ever-blooming flowers, such
as thy Henna ne’er produced, breathe to gentler zephyrs. There is,
moreover, a precious tree in the leafy groves whose curving branches
gleam with living ore--a tree consecrate to thee. Thou shalt be queen
of blessed autumn and ever enriched with golden fruit. Nay more;
whatsoe’er the limpid air embraces, whatever earth nourishes, the salt
seas sweep, the rivers roll, or the marsh-lands feed, all living things
alike shall yield them to thy sway, all, I say, that dwell beneath the
orb of the moon that is the seventh of the planets and in its ethereal
journey separates things mortal from the deathless

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 340

    sub tua purpurei venient vestigia reges                            300
    deposito luxu turba cum paupere mixti
    (omnia mors aequat); tu damnatura nocentes,
    tu requiem latura piis; te iudice sontes
    improba cogentur vitae commissa fateri.
    accipe Lethaeo famulas cum gurgite Parcas,                         305
    sitque ratum quodcumque voles.”
                                 Haec fatus ovantes
    exhortatur equos et Tartara mitior intrat.
    conveniunt animae, quantas violentior Auster
    decutit arboribus frondes aut nubibus imbres
    colligit aut frangit fluctus aut torquet harenas;                  310
    cunctaque praecipiti stipantur saecula cursu
    insignem visura nurum. mox ipse serenus
    ingreditur facili passus mollescere risu
    dissimilisque sui. dominis intrantibus ingens
    adsurgit Phlegethon: flagrantibus hispida rivis                    315
    barba madet totoque fluunt incendia vultu.
      Occurrunt properi lecta de plebe ministri:
    pars altos revocant currus frenisque solutis
    vertunt emeritos ad pascua nota iugales;
    pars aulaea tenent; alii praetexere ramis                          320
    limina et in thalamum cultas extollere vestes.
    reginam casto cinxerunt agmine matres
    Elysiae teneroque levant sermone timores
    et sparsos religant crines et vultibus addunt
    flammea sollicitum praevelatura pudorem.                           325
      Pallida laetatur regio gentesque sepultae

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 341

stars. To thy feet shall come purple-clothed kings, stripped of their
pomp, and mingling with the unmoneyed throng; for death renders all
equal. Thou shalt give doom to the guilty and rest to the virtuous.
Before thy judgement-throne the wicked must confess the crimes of
their evil lives. Lethe’s stream shall obey thee and the Fates be thy
handmaidens. Be thy will done.”

So speaking he urges on his triumphant steeds and enters Tartarus in
gentler wise. The shades assemble, thick as the leaves the stormy south
wind shakes down from the trees, dense as the rainclouds it masses,
countless as the billows it curls or the sand it scatters. The dead of
every age throng with hastening foot to see so illustrious a bride.
Soon Pluto himself enters with joyful mien submitting him to the
softening influence of pleasant laughter, all unlike his former self.
At the incoming of his lord and mistress huge Phlegethon rises; his
bristly beard is wet with burning streams and flames dart o’er all his
countenance.

There hasten to greet the pair slaves chosen from out the number.
Some put away the lofty chariot, take the bits from the mouths of
the toil-freed horses and turn them out to graze in their accustomed
pastures. Some hold back the curtains, others decorate the doorway
with branches and fasten broidered hangings in the bridal chamber. In
chaste bands the matrons of Elysium throng their queen, and with sweet
converse banish her fear; they gather and braid her dishevelled hair
and place the wedding-veil upon her head to hide her troubled blushes.

Joy fills that grey land, the buried throng holds

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 342

    luxuriant epulisque vacant genialibus umbrae.
    grata coronati peragunt convivia Manes;
    rumpunt insoliti tenebrosa silentia cantus;
    sedantur gemitus. Erebi se sponte relaxat                          330
    squalor et aeternam patitur rarescere noctem,
    urna nec incertas versat Minoia sortes.
    verbera nulla sonant nulloque frementia luctu
    impia dilatis respirant Tartara poenis:
    non rota suspensum praeceps Ixiona torquet;                        335
    non aqua Tantaleis subducitur invida labris.
    solvitur Ixion et Tantalus invenit undas
    et Tityos tandem spatiosos erigit artus
    squalentisque novem detexit iugera campi
    (tantus erat), laterisque piger sulcator opaci                     340
    invitus trahitur lasso de pectore vultur
    abreptasque dolet iam non sibi crescere fibras.
      Oblitae scelerum formidatique furoris
    Eumenides cratera parant et vina feroci
    crine bibunt flexisque minis iam lene canentes                     345
    extendunt socios ad pocula plena cerastas
    et festas alio succendunt lumine taedas.
    tunc et pestiferi pacatum flumen Averni
    innocuae transistis, aves, flatumque repressit
    Amsanctus: fixo tacuit torrente vorago.                            350
    tunc Acheronteos mutato gurgite fontes
    lacte novo tumuisse ferunt, hederisque virentem
    Cocyton dulci perhibent undasse Lyaeo.
    stamina nec rumpit Lachesis; nec turbida sacris
    obstrepitant lamenta choris. mors nulla vagatur                    355

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 343

high festival, and the ghosts sport them at the nuptial feast. The
flower-crowned Manes sit at a joyous banquet and unwonted song breaks
the gloomy silence; wailing is hushed. Hell’s murk gladly disperses
and suffers the darkness of age-long night to grow less impenetrable.
Minos’ urn of judgement throws no ambiguous lots; the sound of blows
is stilled, and Tartarus, the prison of the wicked, is hushed and
still, for punishments are intermitted. No longer is Ixion tortured by
the ever-turning wheel to which he is bound; from Tantalus’ lips no
more is the flying water withdrawn. Ixion is freed, Tantalus reaches
the stream, and Tityus at length straightens out his huge limbs and
uncovers nine acres of foul ground (such was his size), and the
vulture, that burrows lazily into the dark side, is dragged off from
his wearied breast sore against its will, lamenting that no longer is
the devoured flesh renewed for it.

The Furies, forgetful of crimes and dread wrath, make ready the
wine-bowl and drink therefrom for all their snaky hair. Nay, with
gentle song, their threatenings laid aside, they stretch out their
snakes to the full cups and kindle the festal torches with unusual
flame. Then, too, the birds flew unhurt over the now appeasèd stream of
poisonous Avernus, and Lake Amsanctus checked his deadly exhalations;
the stream was stayed and the whirlpool grew still. They say that then
the springs of Acheron were changed and welled up with new milk, while
Cocytus, enwreathed with ivy, flowed along in streams of sweet wine.
Lachesis slit not the thread of life nor did funeral dirge sound in
challenge to the holy chant. Death walked not

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 344

    in terris, nullique rogum planxere parentes.
    navita non moritur fluctu, non cuspide miles;
    oppida funerei pollent inmunia leti,
    impexamque senex velavit harundine frontem
    portitor et vacuos egit cum carmine remos.                         360
      Iam suus inferno processerat Hesperus orbi:
    ducitur in thalamum virgo. stat pronuba iuxta
    stellantes Nox picta sinus tangensque cubile
    omina perpetuo genitalia foedere sancit;
    exultant cum voce pii Ditisque sub aula                            365
    talia pervigili sumunt exordia plausu:
      “Nostra potens Iuno tuque o germane Tonantis
    et gener, unanimi consortia discite somni
    mutuaque alternis innectite vota lacertis.
    iam felix oritur proles; iam laeta futuros                         370
    expectat Natura deos. nova numina rebus
    addite et optatos Cereri proferte nepotes.”


LIBER TERTIUS

(XXXVI.)

    Iuppiter interea cinctam Thaumantida nimbis
    ire iubet totoque deos arcessere mundo.
    illa colorato Zephyros illapsa volatu
    numina conclamat pelagi Nymphasque morantes
    increpat et Fluvios umentibus evocat antris.                         5

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 345

on earth and no parents wept beside the funeral pyre. The wave brought
not destruction to the sailor nor the spear to the warrior. Cities
flourished and knew not death, the destroyer. Charon crowned his
uncombed locks with sedge and singing plied his weightless oars.

And now its own evening-star had shone upon the underworld. The maiden
is led into the bridal chamber. Night, clad in starry raiment, stands
by her as her brideswoman; she touches the couch and blesses the union
of marriage with a bond that cannot be broken. The blessed shades raise
their voices and beneath the palace roof of Dis thus begin their song
with sleepless acclaim: “Proserpine, queen of our realm, and thou,
Pluto, at once the brother and the son-in-law of Jove, the Thunderer,
be it yours to know the alliance of conjoined sleep; pledge mutual
troth as ye hold each other in intertwining arms. Happy offspring shall
be yours; joyous Nature awaits gods yet to be born. Give the world a
new divinity and Ceres the grandchildren she longs for.”


BOOK III

(XXXVI.)

Meanwhile Jove bids cloud-girt Iris go gather the gods from the whole
universe. She, outstripping the breezes in her rainbow flight, calls to
the sea-deities, chides the Nymphs for their delay, and summons forth
the river-gods from their moist

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 346

    ancipites trepidique ruunt, quae causa quietos
    excierit, tanto quae res agitanda tumultu.
    ut patuit stellata domus, considere iussi,
    nec confusus honor: caelestibus ordine sedes
    prima datur; tractum proceres tenuere secundum                      10
    aequorei, placidus Nereus reverendaque Phorci
    canities; Glaucum series extrema biformem
    accipit et certo mansurum Protea vultu.
    nec non et senibus Fluviis concessa sedendi
    gloria; plebeio stat cetera more iuventus,                          15
    mille Amnes. liquidis incumbunt patribus udae
    Naides et taciti mirantur sidera Fauni.
      Tum gravis ex alto genitor sic orsus Olympo:
    “abduxere meas iterum mortalia curas
    iam pridem neglecta mihi, Saturnia postquam                         20
    otia et ignavi senium cognovimus aevi;
    sopitosque diu populos torpore paterno
    sollicitae placuit stimulis impellere vitae,
    incultis ne sponte seges grandesceret arvis,
    undaret neu silva favis, neu vina tumerent                          25
    fontibus et totae fremerent in pocula ripae
    (haud equidem invideo--neque enim livescere fas est
    vel nocuisse deos--sed, quod dissuasor honesti
    luxus et humanas oblimat copia mentes),
    provocet ut segnes animos rerumque remotas                          30
    ingeniosa vias paulatim exploret egestas
    utque artes pariat sollertia, nutriat usus.
      “Nunc mihi cum magnis instat Natura querellis

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 347

caverns. Out they haste in doubt and fear what this disturbance of
their peace may signify or what has caused so great an upheaval.
The starry heaven is thrown open and the gods are bidden take their
seats as merit, not chance, dictates. The first places are accorded
to the heavenly powers, next come the ocean-deities, calm Nereus and
grey-haired Phorcus, last twiform Glaucus and Proteus, for once of
unvarying shape. The agèd river-gods, too, are privileged to take their
seats; the other rivers, a thousand strong, stand as stands the youth
of an earthly assembly. Dripping water-nymphs lean on their moist sires
and Fauns in silence marvel at the stars.

Then the grave Father from his seat on high Olympus thus began: “Once
more the affairs of men have won care from me, affairs long neglected
since I looked upon the repose of Saturn’s reign and knew the torpor
of that stagnant age, when I had fain urged the race of man, long sunk
in lethargy by reason of my sire’s sluggish rule, with the goads of
anxious life, whereby their crops should no more grow to maturity of
their own accord in the untilled fields nor yet the forest trees drip
with honey nor wine flow from springs nor every stream course sounding
into cups. ’Twas not that I grudged their blessings--gods may not envy
nor hurt--but because luxury is a foe to a godly life, and plenty
dulls the mind of men; therefore I bade necessity, invention’s mother,
provoke their sluggish spirits and little by little search out the
hidden tracks of things; bade industry give birth to civilization and
practice nourish it.

“Nature now with ceaseless complaint bids me

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 348

    humanum relevare genus, durumque tyrannum
    inmitemque vocat regnataque saecula patri                           35
    commemorat parcumque Iovem se divite clamat,
    qui campos horrere situ dumisque repleri
    rura velim, nullis exornem fructibus annum.
    se iam, quae genetrix mortalibus ante fuisset,
    in dirae subito mores transisse novercae;                           40
    ‘quid mentem traxisse polo, quid profuit altum
    erexisse caput, pecudum si more pererrant
    avia, si frangunt communia pabula glandes?
    haecine vita iuvat silvestribus abdita[127] lustris,
    indiscreta feris?’ tales cum saepe parentis                         45
    pertulerim questus, tandem clementior orbi
    Chaonio statui gentes avertere victu:
    atque adeo Cererem, quae nunc ignara malorum
    verberat Idaeos torva cum matre leones,
    per mare, per terras avido discurrere luctu                         50
    decretum, natae donec laetata repertae
    indicio tribuat fruges, currusque feratur
    nubibus ignotas populis sparsurus aristas
    et iuga caerulei subeant Actaea dracones.
    quodsi quis Cereri raptorem prodere divum                           55
    audeat, imperii molem pacemque profundam
    obtestor rerum, natus licet ille sororve
    vel coniunx fuerit natarumve agminis una,
    se licet illa meo conceptam vertice iactet:
    sentiet iratum procul aegide, sentiet ictum                         60
    fulminis et genitum divina sorte pigebit
    optabitque mori: tunc vulnere saucius ipsi

    [127] _abdita_ ς; Birt reads _addita_, following the other MSS.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 349

succour the race of man, calls me cruel and implacable tyrant, calls to
mind the centuries of my sire’s empery and dubs me miser of her riches,
for that I would have the world a wilderness and the land covered with
scrub and would beautify the year with no fruits. She complained that
she, who was erstwhile the mother of all living things, had suddenly
taken upon her the hated guise of a stepmother. ‘Of what avail that
man derived his intelligence from above, that he has held up his head
to heaven, if he wander like the beasts through trackless places, if
with them he crushes acorns for food? Can such a life as this bring him
happiness, hid in the forest glades, indistinguishable from the life of
animals?’ Since I bore so often such complaints from the lips of mother
Nature, at length I took pity on the world and decided to make man to
cease from his oak-tree food; wherefore I have decreed that Ceres, who
now, ignorant of her loss, lashes the lions of Mount Ida, accompanying
her dread mother, should wander over sea and land in anxious grief,
until, in her joy at finding the traces of her lost daughter, she grant
man the gift of corn and her chariot is borne aloft through the clouds
to scatter among the people ears before unknown and the steel-blue
serpents submit them to the Attic yoke.[128] But if any of the gods
dare inform Ceres who is the ravisher, I swear by the immensity of mine
empire, by the firm-stablished peace of the world, be he son or sister,
spouse or daughter, vaunt he his birth as from mine own head, he shall
feel afar the wrath of mine arms, the thunderbolt’s blow, and be sorry
he was born a god and pray for death. Then, sore wounded, he shall be
handed

    [128] Attic, because Ceres in her wanderings came to Eleusis where
    she instructed Triptolemus, son of Celeus, King of Eleusis, in the
    art of agriculture.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 350

    tradetur genero, passurus prodita regna,
    et sciet an propriae conspirent Tartara causae.
    hoc sanctum; mansura fluant hoc ordine fata.”                       65
    dixit et horrendo concussit sidera motu.
      At procul armisoni Cererem sub rupibus antri
    securam placidamque diu iam certa peracti
    terrebant simulacra mali, noctesque timorem
    ingeminant omnique perit Proserpina somno.                          70
    namque modo adversis invadi viscera telis,
    nunc sibi mutatas horret nigrescere vestes,
    nunc steriles mediis frondere penatibus ornos.
    stabat praeterea luco dilectior omni
    laurus, virgineos quondam quae fronde pudica                        75
    umbrabat thalamos: hanc imo stipite caesam
    vidit et incomptos foedari pulvere ramos
    quaesivitque nefas. Dryades dixere gementes
    Tartarea Furias debellavisse bipenni.
      Sed tunc ipsa sui iam non ambagibus ullis                         80
    nuntia materno facies ingesta sopori:
    namque videbatur tenebroso obtecta recessu
    carceris et saevis Proserpina vincta catenis,
    non qualem Siculis olim mandaverat arvis
    nec qualem roseis nuper convallibus Aetnae                          85
    suspexere deae: squalebat pulchrior auro
    caesaries et nox oculorum infecerat ignes
    exhaustusque gelu pallet rubor, ille superbi
    flammeus oris honos, et non cessura pruinis
    membra colorantur picei caligine regni.                             90

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 351

over to my son-in-law, Pluto himself, for punishment in those regions
he had fain betray. There he shall learn whether Hell is true to her
own monarch’s cause. Such is my will; thus let the unchangeable fates
fulfil my decree.” He spake and shook the stars with his dread nod.

But, far from Sicily, no uncertain suspicions of the loss she had
suffered alarmed Ceres, where long she had dwelt peaceful and secure
beneath the rocky roof of the cave resounding with arms. Dreams doubled
her dread and a vision of Proserpine lost troubled her every sleep.
Now she dreams that an enemy’s spear is piercing her body, now (oh
horror!) that her raiment is changed and is become black, now that the
infecund ash is budding in the midst of her house. Moreover, there
stood a laurel, loved above all the grove, that used with maiden leaf
to o’ershadow the virgin bower of Proserpine. This she saw hewn down to
the roots, its straggling branches fouled with dust, and when she asked
the cause of this disaster weeping dryads told her that the Furies had
destroyed it with an axe of Hell.

Next her very image appeared in the mother’s dreams, announcing her
fate in no uncertain manner. She saw Proserpine shut in the dark
confines of a prison-house and bound with cruel chains. Yet not so had
she entrusted her to the fields of Sicily, not so had the wondering
goddesses beheld her in Etna’s flowery meadows. Foul was now that
hair, more beauteous erstwhile than gold; night had dimmed the fire
of her eyes and frost banished the roses from her pale cheeks. The
gracious flush of her skin and those limbs whose whiteness matched the
hoar-frost are alike turned to hell-tinctured

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 352

    ergo hanc ut dubio vix tandem agnoscere visu
    evaluit: “cuius tot poenae criminis?” inquit
    “unde haec informis macies? cui tanta potestas
    in me saevitiae? rigidi cur vincula ferri
    vix aptanda feris molles meruere lacerti?                           95
    tu mea, tu proles? an vana fallimur umbra?”
      Illa refert: “heu dira parens nataeque peremptae
    immemor! heu fulvas animo transgressa leaenas!
    tantane te nostri tenuere oblivia? tantum
    unica despicior? certe Proserpina nomen                            100
    dulce tibi, tali quae nunc, ut cernis, hiatu
    suppliciis inclusa teror! tu saeva choreis
    indulges? Phrygias vel nunc interstrepis urbes?
    quodsi non omnem pepulisti pectore matrem,
    si tua nata, Ceres, et non me Caspia tigris                        105
    edidit, his, oro, miseram defende cavernis
    inque superna refer, prohibent si fata reverti,
    vel tantum visura veni.”
                             Sic fata trementes
    tendere conatur palmas. vis improba ferri
    impedit et motae somnum solvere catenae.                           110
    obriguit visis; gaudet non vera fuisse;
    complexu caruisse dolet. penetralibus amens
    prosilit et tali compellat voce Cybeben:
      “Iam non ulterius Phrygia tellure morabor,
    sancta parens: revocat tandem custodia cari                        115
    pignoris et cunctis obiecti fraudibus anni.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 353

grain. When, therefore, she was at last able to recognize her daughter,
albeit with doubtful gaze, she cried: “What crime hath merited these
many punishments? Whence comes this dreadful wasting away? Who hath
power to wreak such cruelty upon me? How have thy soft arms deserved
fetters of stubborn iron, scarce fitted for beasts? Art thou my
daughter or does a vain shadow deceive me?”

Thus she answered: “Cruel mother, forgetful of thy daughter’s fate,
more hard of heart than the tawny lioness! Could’st thou be so heedless
of me? Didst thou hold me cheap for that I am thy sole daughter? Dear
indeed to thee must be the name of Proserpine who now, shut in this
vast cavern, as thou seest, am plagued with torment! Hast thou heart to
dance, cruel mother? Canst thou revel through the cities of Phrygia? If
thou hast not banished the mother from thy breast, if thou, Ceres, art
really my mother and ’twas no Hyrcanian tiger gave me birth, save me, I
pray thee, from this prison and restore me to the upper world. If the
fates forbid my return come thou down at least and visit me.”

So spake she and strove to hold out her trembling hands. The iron’s
ruthless strength forbade it, and the clangour of the chains awoke her
sleeping mother. Ceres lay stiff with terror at the vision, rejoices
that it was not true, but grieves that she cannot embrace her daughter.
Maddened with fear she rushes out of the cavern and thus addresses
Cybele: “No longer now will I tarry in the land of Phrygia, holy
mother; the duty of protecting my dear daughter calls me back after so
long an absence, for she is of an age that is exposed to many dangers.
I put not

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 354

    nec mihi Cyclopum quamvis extructa caminis
    culmina fida satis. timeo ne fama latebras
    prodiderit leviusque meum Trinacria celet
    depositum. terret nimium vulgata locorum                           120
    nobilitas. aliis sedes obscurior oris
    exquirenda mihi; gemitu flammisque propinquis
    Enceladi nequeunt umbracula nostra taceri.
    somnia quin etiam variis infausta figuris
    saepe monent, nullusque dies non triste minatur                    125
    augurium. quotiens flaventia serta comarum
    sponte cadunt! quotiens exundat ab ubere sanguis!
    larga vel invito prorumpunt flumina vultu
    iniussaeque manus mirantia pectora tundunt.
    si buxus inflare velim, ferale gemiscunt;                          130
    tympana si quatiam, planctus mihi tympana reddunt.
    ah vereor, ne quid portendant omina veri!
    hae longae nocuere morae!”
                                “Procul inrita venti
    dicta ferant” subicit Cybele; “nec tanta Tonanti
    segnities, ut non pro pignore fulmina mittat.                      135
    i tamen et nullo turbata revertere casu.”
      Haec ubi, digreditur templis. sed nulla ruenti
    mobilitas: tardos queritur non ire dracones
    inmeritasque movens alterno verbere pennas
    Sicaniam quaerit, cum necdum absconderit Idam.                     140
    cuncta pavet speratque nihil. sic aestuat ales,
    quae teneros humili fetus commiserit orno
    adlatura cibos, et plurima cogitat absens:
    ne gracilem ventus decusserit arbore nidum,
    ne furtum pateant homini, ne praeda colubris.                      145

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 355

complete trust in my palace, though built with iron from the Cyclops’
furnace. I fear lest rumour disclose her hiding-place and Sicily too
lightly guard my trust. The fame of that place too widely bruited
abroad alarms me; needs must I find elsewhere some obscurer abode.
Our retreat must be on all men’s tongues by reason of the groanings
of Enceladus and the neighbour flames. Ill-omened dreams, too, with
diverse visions often give me pause, and no day passes but brings
some inauspicious hap. How often has my crown of golden ears fallen
of itself! How often blood flowed from my breast! In mine own despite
streams of tears course down my cheeks and unbidden my hands beat my
astonished breast. Would I blow up the flute, funereal is the note; do
I shake the cymbals, the cymbals echo a sound of mourning. Alas! I fear
there is some trouble in these portents. This long sojourn, has wrought
me woe.”

“May the wind carry far away thy vain words,” replies Cybele; “not such
the Thunderer’s want of care that he would not hurl his bolt in his
daughter’s defence. Yet go and return, dismayed by no evil hap.”

This said, Ceres left the temple; but no speed is enough for her haste;
she complains that her sluggish dragons scarce move, and, lashing the
wings now of this one and now of that (though little they deserved
it), she hopes to reach Sicily e’er yet out of sight of Ida. She fears
everything and hopes nothing, anxious as the bird that has entrusted
its unfledged brood to a low-growing ash and while absent gathering
food has many fears lest perchance the wind has blown the fragile nest
from the tree, lest her young ones be exposed to the theft of man or
the greed of snakes.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 356

      Ut domus excubiis incustodita remotis
    et resupinati neglecto cardine postes
    flebilis et tacitae species adparuit aulae,
    non expectato respectu cladis amictus
    conscidit et fractas cum crine avellit aristas.                    150
    haeserunt lacrimae; nec vox aut spiritus oris
    redditur, atque imis vibrat tremor ossa medullis;
    succidui titubant gressus; foribusque reclusis,
    dum vacuas sedes et desolata pererrat
    atria, semirutas confuso stamine telas                             155
    atque interceptas agnoscit pectinis artes.
    divinus perit ille labor, spatiumque relictum
    audax sacrilego supplebat aranea textu.
      Nec deflet plangitve malum; tantum oscula telae
    figit et abrumpit mutas in fila querellas;                         160
    attritosque manu radios proiectaque pensa
    cunctaque virgineo sparsa oblectamina ludo
    ceu natam pressat gremio; castumque cubile
    desertosque toros et, sicubi sederat olim,
    perlegit: attonitus stabulo ceu pastor inani,                      165
    cui pecus aut rabies Poenorum inopina leonum
    aut populatrices infestavere catervae;
    serus at ille redit vastataque pascua lustrans
    non responsuros ciet imploratque iuvencos.
      Atque ibi secreta tectorum in parte iacentem                     170
    conspicit Electram, natae quae sedula nutrix
    Oceani priscas inter notissima Nymphas.
    par Cereri pietas; haec post cunabula dulci
    ferre sinu summoque Iovi deducere parvam
    sueverat et genibus ludentem aptare paternis.                      175

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 357

When she saw the gate-keepers fled, the house unguarded, the rusted
hinges, the overthrown doorposts, and the miserable state of the silent
halls, pausing not to look again at the disaster, she rent her garment
and tore away the shattered corn-ears along with her hair. She could
not weep nor speak nor breathe and a trembling shook the very marrow of
her bones; her faltering steps tottered. She flung open the doors and
wandering through the empty rooms and deserted halls, recognized the
half-ruined warp with its disordered threads and the work of the loom
broken off. The goddess’ labours had come to naught, and what remained
to be done, that the bold spider was finishing with her sacrilegious
web.

She weeps not nor bewails the ill; only kisses the loom and stifles
her dumb complaints amid the threads, clasping to her bosom, as though
it had been her child, the spindles her child’s hand had touched, the
wool she had cast aside, and all the toys scattered in maiden sport.
She scans the virgin bed, the deserted couch, and the chair where
Proserpine had sat: even as a herd, whose drove the unexpected fury of
an African lion or bands of marauding beasts have attacked, gazes in
amaze at the vacant stall, and, too late returned, wanders through the
emptied pastures, sadly calling to the unreplying steers.

And there, in the innermost parts of the house, she saw lying Electra,
loving nurse of Proserpine, best known among the old Nymphs of Ocean;
she who loved Proserpine as did Ceres. ’Twas she who, when Proserpine
had left her cradle, would bear her in her loving bosom and bring the
little girl to mighty Jove and set her to play on her father’s

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 358

    haec comes, haec custos, haec proxima mater haberi.
    tunc laceras effusa comas et pulvere cano
    sordida sidereae raptus lugebat alumnae.
      Hanc adgressa Ceres, postquam suspiria tandem
    laxavit frenosque dolor: “quod cernimus” inquit                    180
    “excidium? cui praeda feror? regnatne maritus
    an caelum Titanes habent? quae talia vivo
    ausa Tonante manus? rupitne Typhoia cervix
    Inarimen? fractane iugi compage Vesevi
    Alcyoneus Tyrrhena pedes per stagna cucurrit?                      185
    an vicina mihi quassatis faucibus Aetna
    protulit Enceladum? nostros an forte penates
    adpetiit centum Briareia turba lacertis?
    heu, ubi nunc es, nata, mihi? quo, mille ministrae,
    quo, Cyane? volucres quae vis Sirenas abegit?                      190
    haecine vestra fides? sic fas aliena tueri
    pignora?”
              Contremuit nutrix, maerorque pudori
    cedit, et adspectus miserae non ferre parentis
    emptum morte velit longumque inmota moratur
    auctorem dubium certumque expromere funus.                         195
    vix tamen haec:
                   “Acies utinam vesana Gigantum
    hanc dederit cladem! levius communia tangunt.
    sed divae, multoque minus quod rere, sorores
    in nostras (nimium!) coniuravere ruinas.
    insidias superum, cognatae vulnera cernis                          200
    invidiae. Phlegra nobis infensior aether.
      “Florebat tranquilla domus; nec limina virgo

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 359

knee. She was her companion, her guardian, and could be deemed her
second mother. There, with torn and dishevelled hair, all foul with
grey dust, she was lamenting the rape of her divine foster-child.

Ceres approached her, and when at length her grief allowed her sighs
free rein: “What ruin is here?” she said. “Of what enemy am I become
the victim? Does my husband yet rule or do the Titans hold heaven? What
hand hath dared this, if the Thunderer be still alive? Have Typhon’s
shoulders forced up Inarime or does Alcyoneus course on foot through
the Etruscan Sea, having burst the bonds of imprisoning Vesuvius?
Or has the neighbouring mountain of Etna oped her jaws and expelled
Enceladus? Perchance Briareus with his hundred arms has attacked
my house? Ah, my daughter, where art thou now? Whither are fled my
thousand servants, whither Cyane? What violence has driven away the
winged Sirens? Is this your faith? Is this the way to guard another’s
treasure?”

The nurse trembled and her sorrow gave place to shame; fain would she
have died could she so escape the gaze of that unhappy mother, and long
stayed she motionless, hesitating to disclose the suspected criminal
and the all too certain death. Scarce could she thus speak: “Would that
the raging band of Giants had wrought this ruin! Easier to bear is a
common lot. ’Tis the goddesses, and, though thou wilt scarce credit
it, her own sisters, who have conspired to our undoing. Thou seest the
devices of gods and wounds inflicted by sisters’ jealousy. Heaven is a
more cruel enemy than Hell.

“All quiet was the house, the maiden dared not

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                              Page 360

    linquere nec virides audebat visere saltus
    praeceptis obstricta tuis. telae labor illi;
    Sirenes requies. sermonum gratia mecum,                            205
    mecum somnus erat cautique per atria ludi:
    cum subito (dubium quonam monstrante latebras
    rescierit) Cytherea venit suspectaque nobis
    ne foret, hinc Phoeben comites, hinc Pallada iunxit.
    protinus effuso laetam se fingere risu                             210
    nec semel amplecti nomenque iterare sororis
    et dura de matre queri, quae tale recessu
    maluerit damnare decus vetitamque dearum
    colloquio patriis procul amandaverit astris.
    nostra rudis gaudere malis et nectare largo                        215
    instaurare dapes. nunc arma habitumque Dianae
    induitur digitisque attemptat mollibus arcum,
    nunc crinita iubis galeam, laudante Minerva,
    implet et ingentem clipeum gestare laborat.
      “Prima Venus campos Aetnaeaque rura maligno                      220
    ingerit adflatu. vicinos callida flores
    ingeminat meritumque loci velut inscia quaerit
    nec credit, quod bruma rosas innoxia servet,
    quod gelidi rubeant alieno genuine menses
    verna nec iratum timeant virgulta Booten.                          225
    dum loca miratur, studio dum flagrat eundi,
    persuadet; teneris heu lubrica moribus aetas!
    quos ego nequidquam planctus, quas inrita fudi

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 361

o’erstep the threshold nor visit the grassy pastures, close bound
by thy commands. The loom gave her work, the Sirens with their song
relaxation--with me she held pleasant converse, with me she slept;
safe delights were hers within the halls. Then suddenly Cytherea came
(who showed her the way to our hid abode I know not), and, that she
might not rouse our suspicions, she brought with her Diana and Minerva,
attending her on either side. Straightway with beaming smiles she put
on a pretence of joy, kissed Proserpine many a time, and repeated the
name of sister, complaining of that hard-hearted mother who chose to
condemn such beauty to imprisonment and complaining that by forbidding
her intercourse with the goddesses she had removed her far from her
father’s heaven. My unwitting charge rejoiced in these evil words and
bade a feast be spread with plentiful nectar. Now she dons Diana’s arms
and dress and tries her bow with her soft fingers. Now crowned with
horse-hair plumes she puts on the helmet, Minerva commending her, and
strives to carry her huge shield.

“Venus was the first with guileful suggestion to mention fields and the
vale of Henna. Cunningly she harps upon the nearness of the flowery
mead, and as though she knew it not, asks what merits the place boasts,
pretending not to believe that a harmless winter allows the roses to
bloom, that the cold months are bright with flowers not rightly theirs,
and that the spring thickets fear not there Boötes’ wrath. So with her
wonderment, her passion to see the spot, she persuades Proserpine.
Alas! how easily does youth err with its weak ways! What tears did I
not shed to no purpose, what vain

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 362

    ore preces! ruit illa tamen confisa sororum
    praesidio; famulae longo post ordine Nymphae.                      230
      “Itur in aeterno vestitos gramine colles
    et prima sub luce legunt, cum rore serenus
    albet ager sparsosque bibunt violaria sucos.
    sed postquam medio sol altior institit axi,
    ecce polum nox foeda rapit tremefactaque nutat                     235
    insula cornipedum pulsu strepituque rotarum.
    nosse nec aurigam licuit: seu mortifer ille
    seu Mors ipsa fuit. livor permanat in herbas;
    deficiunt rivi; squalent rubigine prata
    et nihil adflatum vivit: pallere ligustra,                         240
    expirare rosas, decrescere lilia vidi.
    ut rauco reduces tractu detorsit habenas,
    nox sua prosequitur currum, lux redditur orbi.
    Persephone nusquam. voto rediere peracto
    nec mansere deae. mediis invenimus arvis                           245
    exanimem Cyanen: cervix redimita iacebat
    et caligantes marcebant fronte coronae.
    adgredimur subito et casus scitamur eriles
    (nam propior cladi steterat): quis vultus equorum?
    quis regat? illa nihil, tacito sed laesa veneno                    250
    solvitur in laticem: subrepit crinibus umor;
    liquitur in roremque pedes et brachia manant
    nostraque mox lambit vestigia perspicuus fons.
    discedunt aliae. rapidis Acheloides alis
    sublatae Siculi latus obsedere Pelori                              255

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 363

entreaties did my lips not utter! Away she flew, trusting to the
sisters’ protection; the scattered company of attendant nymphs followed
after her.

“They went to the hills clothed with undying grass and gather flowers
’neath the twilight of dawn, when the quiet meads are white with
dew and violets drink the scattered moisture. But when the sun had
mounted to higher air at noon, behold! murky night hid the sky and
the island trembled and shook beneath the beat of horses’ hoofs and
the rumble of wheels. Who the charioteer was none might tell--whether
he was the harbinger of death or it was Death himself. Gloom spread
through the meadows, the rivers stayed their courses, the fields were
blighted, nor did aught live, once touched with those horses’ breath.
I saw the bryony pale, the roses fade, the lilies wither. When in
his roaring course the driver turned back his steeds the night it
brought accompanied the chariot and light was restored to the world.
Proserpine was nowhere to be seen. Their vows fulfilled, the goddesses
had returned and tarried not. We found Cyane half dead amid the fields;
there she lay, a garland round her neck and the blackened wreaths faded
upon her forehead. At once we approached her and inquired after her
mistress’s fortune, for she had been a witness of the disaster. What,
we asked, was the aspect of the horses; who their driver? Naught said
she, but corrupted with some hidden venom, dissolved into water. Water
crept amid her hair; legs and arms melted and flowed away, and soon a
clear stream washed our feet. The rest are gone; the Sirens, Achelous’
daughters, rising on rapid wing, have occupied the coast of Sicilian
Pelorus, and in wrath

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 364

    accensaeque malo iam non impune canoras
    in pestem vertere lyras: vox blanda carinas
    adligat; audito frenantur carmine remi.
    sola domi luctu senium tractura relinquor.”
      Haeret adhuc suspensa Ceres et singula demens                    260
    ceu nondum transacta timet; mox lumina torquens
    vultu ad caelicolas furiato pectore fertur.
    arduus Hyrcana quatitur sic matre Niphates,
    cuius Achaemenio regi ludibria natos
    advexit tremebundus eques: fremit illa marito                      265
    mobilior Zephyro totamque virentibus iram
    dispergit maculis timidumque hausura profundo
    ore virum vitreae tardatur imagine formae.
      Haud aliter toto genetrix bacchatur Olympo
    “reddite” vociferans. “non me vagus edidit amnis;                  270
    non Dryadum de plebe sumus. turrita Cybebe
    me quoque Saturno genuit. quo iura deorum,
    quo leges cecidere poli? quid vivere recte
    proderit? en audet noti Cytherea pudoris
    ostentare suos post Lemnia vincula vultus!                         275
    hos animos bonus ille sopor castumque cubile
    praebuit! amplexus hoc promeruere pudici!
    nec mirum, si turpe nihil post talia ducit.
    quid vos expertes thalami? tantumne relictus

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 365

at this crime now turned their lyres to man’s destruction, tuneful now
for ill. Their sweet voices stay ships, but once that song is heard the
oars can move no more. I alone am left in the house to drag out an old
age of mourning.”

Ceres is still a prey to anxiety; half distraught she fears everything
as though all were not yet accomplished. Anon she turns her head and
eyes to heaven and with raging breast inveighs against its denizens;
even as lofty Niphates shakes to the roaring of the Hyrcan tigress
whose cubs the terrified horseman has carried off to be the playthings
of Persia’s king. Speedier than the west wind that is her paramour[129]
rushes the tigress, anger blazing from her stripes, but just as she
is about to engulf the terrified hunter in her capacious maw, she is
checked by the mirrored image of her own form[130]: so the mother
of Proserpine rages over all Olympus crying: “Give her back; no
wandering stream gave me birth; I spring not from the Dryad rabble.
Towered Cybele bare me also to Saturn. Where are the ordinances of the
gods, where the laws of heaven? What boots it to live a good life?
See, Cytherea dares show her face (modest goddess!) even after her
Lemnian[131] bondage! ’Tis that chaste sleep and a loverless couch
have given her this courage! This is, I suppose, the reward of those
maidenly embraces! Small wonder that after such infamy she account
nothing disgraceful. Ye goddesses that have known not marriage, is it
thus that ye neglect the honour due to virginity?

    [129] _marito Zephyro_ (ll. 265, 266) refers to the theory of
    impregnation by wind commonly accepted by the ancients (see Arist.
    _H.A._ vi. 19; Verg. _Georg._ iii. 275, etc.).

    [130] It was supposed that the robbed tigress on being confronted
    with a convex mirror supposed the reduced image to be her cub and
    contentedly retired with the mirror in her mouth. Another story
    makes the tigress vent her anger on an ordinary (not convex) mirror.

    [131] A reference to the binding by Hephaestus (to whom Lemnos was
    sacred) of Ares and Aphrodite whom he had surprised in adulterous
    intercourse. The story is told in Homer (Θ 266 _et sqq._). Statius
    (_Silv._ i. 2. 60) uses this very phrase “Lemnia vincula.”

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 366

    virginitatis honos? tantum mutata voluntas?                        280
    iam Veneri iunctae, sociis raptoribus, itis?
    o templis Scythiae atque hominem sitientibus aris
    utraque digna coli! tanti quae causa furoris?
    quam mea vel tenui dicto Proserpina laesit?
    scilicet aut caris pepulit te, Delia, silvis                       285
    aut tibi commissas rapuit, Tritonia, pugnas.
    an gravis eloquio? vestros an forte petebat
    importuna choros? atqui Trinacria longe,
    esset ne vobis oneri, deserta colebat.
    quid latuisse iuvat? rabiem livoris acerbi                         290
    nulla potest placare quies.”
                                His increpat omnes
    vocibus. ast illae (prohibet sententia patris)
    aut reticent aut nosse negant responsaque matri
    dant lacrimas. quid agat? rursus se victa remittit
    inque humiles devecta preces:
                             “Ignoscite, si quid                       295
    intumuit pietas, si quid flagrantius actum
    quam miseros decuit. supplex miserandaque vestris
    advolvor genibus: liceat cognoscere sortem:
    hoc tantum liceat--certos habuisse dolores.
    scire peto, quae forma mali; quamcumque dedistis                   300
    fortunam, sit nota: feram fatumque putabo,
    non scelus. adspectum, precor, indulgete parenti;
    non repetam. quaesita manu securus habeto
    quisquis es; adfirmo praedam; desiste vereri.
    quodsi nos aliquo praevenit foedere raptor,                        305
    tu certe, Latona, refer; confessa Diana
    forte tibi. nosti quid sit Lucina, quis horror

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 367

Have ye so changed your counsel? Do ye now go allied with Venus and her
accomplice ravishers? Worthy each of you to be worshipped in Scythian
temples and at altars that lust after human blood. What hath caused
such great anger? Which of you has my Proserpine wronged even in her
slightest word? Doubtless she drove thee, Delian goddess, from thy
loved woods, or deprived thee, Triton-born, of some battle thou hadst
joined. Did she plague you with talk? Break rudely upon your dances?
Nay, that she might be no burden to you, she dwelt far away in the
solitudes of Sicily. What good hath her retirement done her? No peace
can still the madness of bitter jealousy.”

Thus she upbraids them all. But they, obedient to the Father’s word,
keep silence or say they know nothing, and make tears their answer to
the mother’s questionings. What can she do? She ceases, beaten, and in
turn descends to humble entreaty. “If a mother’s love swelled too high
or if I have done aught more boldly than befitted misery, oh forgive!
A suppliant and wretched I fling me at your feet; grant me to learn
my doom; grant me at least this much--sure knowledge of my woes. Fain
would I know the manner of this ill; whatsoever fortune ye have visited
upon me that will I bear and account it fate, not injustice. Grant a
parent the sight of her child; I ask her not back. Whosoever thou art,
possess in peace what thine hand has taken. The prey is thine, fear
not. But if the ravisher has thwarted me, binding you by some oath, yet
do thou, at least, Latona, tell me his name; to thee mayhap Diana hath
confessed her knowledge. Thou hast known childbirth, the anxiety

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 368

    pro genitis et quantus amor, partusque tulisti
    tu geminos: haec una mihi. sic crine fruaris
    semper Apollineo, sic me felicior aevum                            310
    mater agas.”
               Largis tunc imbribus ora madescunt.
    “quid? tantum dignum fleri dignumque taceri?
    hei mihi, discedunt omnes. quid vana moraris
    ulterius? non bella palam caelestia sentis?
    quin potius natam pelago terrisque requiris?                       315
    accingar lustrare diem, per devia rerum
    indefessa ferar. nulla cessabitur hora,
    non requies, non somnus erit, dum pignus ademptum
    inveniam, gremio quamvis mergatur Hiberae
    Tethyos et Rubro iaceat vallata profundo.                          320
    non Rheni glacies, non me Riphaea tenebunt
    frigora; non dubio Syrtis cunctabitur aestu.
    stat finem penetrare Noti Boreaeque nivalem
    vestigare domum; primo calcabitur Atlas
    occasu facibusque meis lucebit Hydaspes.                           325
    impius errantem videat per rura, per urbes
    Iuppiter; extincta satietur paelice Iuno.
    insultate mihi, caelo regnate superbi,
    ducite praeclarum Cereris de stirpe triumphum!”
      Haec fatur notaeque iugis inlabitur Aetnae                       330
    noctivago taedas informatura labori.
      Lucus erat prope flumen Acin, quod candida praefert
    saepe mari pulchroque secat Galatea natatu,
    densus et innexis Aetnaea cacumina ramis
    qua licet usque tegens. illic posuisse cruentam                    335

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 369

and love for children; to offspring twain hast thou given birth; this
was mine only child. So mayest thou ever enjoy Apollo’s locks, so
mayest thou live a happier mother than I.”

Plenteous tears then bedewed her cheeks. She continued: “Why these
tears? why this silence? Woe is me; all desert me. Why tarriest thou
yet to no purpose? Seest thou not ’tis open war with heaven? were it
not better to seek again thy daughter by sea and land? I will gird
myself and scour the world, unwearied I will penetrate its every
corner, nor ever stay my search, nor rest nor sleep till I find my reft
treasure, though she lie whelmed in the Spanish Ocean bed or hedged
around in the depths of the Red Sea. Neither ice-bound Rhine nor Alpine
frosts shall stay me; the treacherous tides of Syrtes shall not give me
pause. My purpose holds to penetrate the fastnesses of the North and
to tread the snowy home of Boreas. I will climb Atlas on the brink of
the sunset and illumine Hydaspes’ stream with my torches. Let wicked
Jove behold me wandering through towns and country, and Juno’s jealousy
be sated with her rival’s ruin. Have your sport with me, triumph in
heaven, proud gods, celebrate your illustrious victory o’er Ceres’
conquered daughter.”

So spake she and glides down upon Etna’s familiar slopes, there to
fashion torches to aid her night-wandering labours.

There was a wood, hard by the stream of Acis, which fair Galatea oft
chooses in preference to Ocean and cleaves in swimming with her snowy
breast--a wood dense with foliage that closed in Etna’s summit on all
sides with interwoven branches. “Tis there that Jove is said to have
laid down his

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 370

    aegida captivamque pater post proelia praedam
    advexisse datur. Phlegraeis silva superbit
    exuviis totumque nemus victoria vestit.
    hic patuli rictus et prodigiosa Gigantum
    tergora dependent, et adhuc crudele minantur                       340
    adfixae truncis facies, inmaniaque ossa
    serpentum passim cumulis exanguibus albent,
    et rigidae multo suspirant fulmine pelles;
    nullaque non magni iactat se nominis arbor:
    haec centumgemini strictos Aegaeonis enses                         345
    curvata vix fronde levat; liventibus illa
    exultat Coei spoliis; haec arma Mimantis
    sustinet; hos onerat ramos exutus Ophion.
    altior at cunctis abies umbrosaque late
    ipsius Enceladi fumantia gestat opima,                             350
    summi terrigenum regis, caderetque gravata
    pondere, ni lassam fulciret proxima quercus.
    inde timor numenque loco, nemorisque senectae
    parcitur, aetheriisque nefas nocuisse tropaeis.
    pascere nullus oves nec robora laedere Cyclops                     355
    audet et ipse fugit sacra Polyphemus ab umbra.
      Non tamen hoc tardata Ceres. accenditur ultro
    relligione loci vibratque infesta securim
    ipsum etiam feritura Iovem: succidere pinus
    aut magis enodes dubitat prosternere cedros                        360
    exploratque habiles truncos rectique tenorem
    stipitis et certo pertemptat brachia nisu.
    sic, qui vecturus longinqua per aequora merces
    molitur tellure ratem vitamque procellis
    obiectare parat, fagos metitur et alnos                            365

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 371

bloody shield and set his captured spoil after the battle. The grove
glories in trophies from the plain of Phlegra and signs of victory
clothe its every tree. Here hang the gaping jaws and monstrous skins of
the Giants; affixed to trees their faces still threaten horribly, and
heaped up on all sides bleach the huge bones of slaughtered serpents.
Their stiffening sloughs smoke with the blow of many a thunderbolt, and
every tree boasts some illustrious name. This one scarce supports on
its down-bended branches the naked swords of hundred-handed Aegaeon;
that glories in the murky trophies of Coeus; this bears up the arms
of Mimas; spoiled Ophion weighs down those branches. But higher than
all the other trees towers a pine, its shady branches spread wide,
and bears the reeking arms of Enceladus himself, all powerful king of
the Earth-born giants; it would have fallen beneath the heavy burden
did not a neighbouring oak-tree support its wearied weight. Therefore
the spot wins awe and sanctity; none touches the aged grove, and ’tis
accounted a crime to violate the trophies of the gods. No Cyclops dares
pasture there his flock nor hew down the trees, Polyphemus himself
flies from the hallowed shade.

Not for that did Ceres stay her steps; the very sanctity of the place
inflames her wrath; with angry hand she brandishes her axe, ready to
strike Jove himself. She hesitates whether to cut down pines or lay
low knotless cedars, scans likely trunks and lofty trees and shakes
their branches with vigorous hand. Even so when a man, fain to carry
merchandise over distant seas, builds a ship on dry land and makes
ready to expose his life to the tempest, he hews down

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 372

    et varium rudibus silvis accommodat usum:
    quae longa est, tumidis praebebit cornua velis;
    quae fortis, clavo potior; quae lenta, favebit
    remigio: stagni patiens aptanda carinae.
      Tollebant geminae capita inviolata cupressus                     370
    caespite vicino: quales non rupibus Idae
    miratur Simois, quales non divite ripa
    lambit Apollinei nemoris nutritor Orontes.
    germanas adeo credas; sic frontibus aequis
    adstant et socio despectant vertice lucum.                         375
    hae placuere faces. pernix invadit utramque
    cincta sinus, exerta manus, armata bipenni
    alternasque ferit totisque obnixa trementes
    viribus impellit. pariter traxere ruinam
    et pariter posuere comas campoque recumbunt,                       380
    Faunorum Dryadumque dolor. complectitur ambas,
    sicut erant, alteque levat retroque solutis
    crinibus ascendit fastigia montis anheli
    exuperatque aestus et nulli pervia saxa
    atque indignantes vestigia calcat harenas:                         385
    qualis pestiferas animare ad crimina taxos
    torva Megaera ruit, Cadmi seu moenia poscat
    sive Thyesteis properet saevire Mycenis:
    dant tenebrae manesque locum plantisque resultant
    Tartara ferratis, donec Phlegethontis ad undam                     390
    constitit et plenos excepit lampade fluctus.
      Postquam perventum scopuli flagrantis in ora,
    protinus arsuras aversa fronte cupressus
    faucibus iniecit mediis lateque cavernas
    texit et undantem flammarum obstruxit hiatum.                      395

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 373

beech and elm and marks the diverse utility of the yet growing forest;
the lofty tree he selects as yardarms for the swelling sail; the strong
he prefers as a mast; the pliant will make good oars; the waterproof is
suitable for the keel.

Two cypresses in the grass hard by raised their inviolate heads to
heaven; Simois looks not on such in amaze amid the crags of Ida, nor
does Orontes water their like, Orontes that feeds Apollo’s grove and
harbours rich cities on his banks. You would know them for sisters
for they tower equal in height and look down upon the wood with twin
tops. These she would have as torches; she attacks each with vigorous
blows, her gown girt back, her arms bared and armed with the axe.
First one she strikes, then the other, and rains blows upon their
trembling trunks with might and main. Together they crash to the
ground, lay their foliage in the dust and lie upon the plain, wept of
Fauns and wood-nymphs. She seizes both just as they are, uplifts them
and, with hair out-streaming behind her, climbs panting the slopes of
the mountain, passes beyond the flames and inaccessible precipices,
and treads the lava that brooks no mortal footstep: even as the grim
Megaera hastens to kindle yew-trees to light her to crime, speeding her
journey to the walls of Cadmus’ city or meaning to work her devilment
in Thyestean Mycenae; darkness and the shades give her passage, and
Hell rings to her iron tread, till she halts beside Phlegethon’s wave
and fires her torch from its brimming waves.

When she had climbed to the mouth of the burning rock, straightway,
turning aside her head, she thrust the kindling cypresses into its
inmost depths, thus closing in the cavern on all sides and stopping up
the

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 374

    compresso mons igne tonat claususque laborat
    Mulciber: obducti nequeunt exire vapores.
    coniferi micuere apices crevitque favillis
    Aetna novis: strident admisso sulphure rami.
    tum, ne deficerent tantis erroribus, ignes                         400
    semper inocciduos insopitosque manere
    iussit et arcano perfudit robora suco,
    quo Phaëthon inrorat equos, quo Luna iuvencos.
      Iamque soporiferas nocturna silentia terris
    explicuere vices: laniato pectore longas                           405
    incohat illa vias et sic ingressa profatur:
      “Non tales gestare tibi, Proserpina, taedas
    sperabam; sed vota mihi communia matrum
    et thalami festaeque faces caeloque canendus
    ante oculos hymenaeus erat. sic numina fatis                       410
    volvimur et nullo Lachesis discrimine saevit?
    quam nuper sublimis eram quantisque procorum
    cingebar studiis! quae non mihi pignus ob unum
    cedebat numerosa parens! tu prima voluptas,
    tu postrema mihi; per te fecunda ferebar.                          415
    o decus, o requies, o grata superbia matris,
    qua gessi florente deam, qua sospite numquam
    inferior Iunone fui: nunc squalida, vilis.
    hoc placitum patri. cur autem adscribimus illum
    his lacrimis? ego te, fateor, crudelis ademi,                      420
    quae te deserui solamque instantibus ultro
    hostibus exposui. raucis secura fruebar
    nimirum thiasis et laeta sonantibus armis

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 375

blazing exit of the flames. The mountain thunders with repressed fire
and Vulcan is shut in a grievous prison; the enclosed smoke cannot
escape. The cone-bearing tops of the cypresses blaze and Etna grows
with new ashes; the branches crackle, kindled with the sulphur. Then,
lest their long journey should cause them to fail, she bids the flames
never die nor sleep and drenches the wood with that secret drug[132]
wherewith Phaëthon bedews his steeds and the Moon her bulls.

Silent night had now in her turn visited upon the world her gift of
sleep. Ceres, with her wounded breast, starts on her long journey and,
as she sets out, speaks as follows: “Little thought I, Proserpine, to
carry for thee such torches as these. I had hoped what every mother
hopes; marriage and festal torches and a wedding-song to be sung in
heaven--such was my expectation. Are we divinities thus the sport of
fate? does Lachesis vent her spleen on us as on mankind? How lofty
was but now mine estate, surrounded with suitors innumerable for my
daughter’s hand! What mother of many children but would have owned
her my inferior by reason of my only daughter! Thou wast my first joy
and my last; I was called prolific for that I bare thee. Thou wert my
glory, my comfort, dear object of a mother’s pride; with thee alive
I was goddess indeed, with thee safe I was Juno’s equal. Now am I
outcast, beggared. ’Tis the Father’s will. Yet why make Jove answerable
for my tears? ’Twas I who so cruelly undid thee, I confess it, for I
deserted thee and heedlessly exposed thee to threatening foes. Too
deeply was I enmeshed in careless enjoyment of shrill-voiced revel,
and, happy amid the din of arms,

    [132] A magic drug or herb on which the sun is said to have fed
    his horses in order to render them non-inflammable. Ovid tells how
    Phaëthon was treated by his father in a like way (_Met._ ii. 122).

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 376

    iungebam Phrygios, cum tu raperere, leones.
    accipe quas merui poenas. en ora fatiscunt                         425
    vulneribus grandesque rubent in pectore sulci.
    immemor en uterus crebro contunditur ictu.
      “Qua te parte poli, quo te sub cardine quaeram?
    quis monstrator erit? quae me vestigia ducent?
    qui currus? ferus ipse quis est? terraene, marisne                 430
    incola? quae volucrum deprendam signa rotarum?
    ibo, ibo quocumque pedes, quocumque iubebit
    casus; sic Venerem quaerat deserta Dione.
      “Efficietne labor? rursus te, nata, licebit
    amplecti? manet ille decor, manet ille genarum                     435
    fulgor? an infelix talem fortasse videbo,
    qualis nocte venis, qualem per somnia vidi?”
      Sic ait et prima gressus molitur ab Aetna
    exitiique reos flores ipsumque rapinae
    detestata locum sequitur dispersa viarum                           440
    indicia et pleno rimatur lumine campos
    inclinatque faces, omnis madet orbita fletu;
    omnibus admugit,[133] quocumque it in aequore, sulcis.[134]
    adnatat umbra fretis extremaque lucis imago
    Italiam Libyamque ferit: clarescit Etruscum                        445
    litus et accenso resplendent aequore Syrtes.
    antra procul Scyllaea petit canibusque reductis
    pars stupefacta silet, pars nondum exterrita latrat.

    [133] Birt _omnibus admugit. quocumque it in aequore, fulvis adnatat.…_

    [134] _sulcis_ ς; _fulvis_ FSV; _silvis_ W.

       *       *       *       *       *

                              Page 377

I was yoking Phrygian lions whilst thou wast being carried off. Yet see
the punishment visited upon me. My face is seared with wounds and long
gashes furrow my bloody breast. My womb, forgetful that it gave thee
birth, is beaten with continual blows.

“Where under heaven shall I find thee? Beneath what quarter of the sky?
Who shall point the way, what path shall lead me? What chariot was it?
Who was that cruel ravisher? A denizen of earth or sea? What traces of
his wingèd wheels can I discover? Whithersoever my steps lead me or
chance direct, thither will I go. Even so may Dione be deserted and
seek for Venus!

“Will my labours be successful? Shall I ever again be blest with thine
embrace, my daughter? Art thou still fair; still glows the brightness
of thy cheeks? Or shall I perchance see thee as thou cam’st in my
nightly vision; as I saw thee in my dreams?”

So spake she and from Etna first she drags her steps, and, cursing its
guilty flowers and the spot whence Proserpine was ravaged, she follows
the straying tracks of the chariot-wheels and examines the fields in
the full light of her lowered torch. Every rut is wet with her tears;
she weeps at each trace she espies in her wanderings over the plain.
She glides a shadow o’er the sea and the farthest ray of her torches’
gleam strikes the coasts of Italy and Libya. The Tuscan shore grows
bright and the Syrtes gleam with kindled wave. The light reaches the
distant cave of Scylla, of whose dogs some shrink back and are still
in dumb amaze, others, not yet horrified into silence, continue to
bark.[135]

    [135] For the unfinished state of the poem see Introduction, p. xiv.

       *       *       *       *       *




INDEX OF POEMS


[_The numbers in the right-hand column are those of Gesner’s edition
retained by Birt_]


  Panegyricus Probini et Olybrii                                        I.

  In Rufinum I. praef.                                                 II.

  In Rufinum I                                                        III.

  In Rufinum II. praef.                                                IV.

  In Rufinum II                                                         V.

  Bellum Gildonicum I                                                  XV.

  In Eutropium I                                                    XVIII.

  In Eutropium II. praef.                                             XIX.

  In Eutropium II                                                      XX.

  Fescennina de nuptiis Honorii I                                      XI.

  Fescennina II                                                       XII.

  Fescennina III                                                     XIII.

  Fescennina IV                                                       XIV.

  Epithalamii de nuptiis Honorii praef.                                IX.

  Epithalamium de nuptiis Honorii                                       X.

  De tertio consulatu Honorii praef.                                   VI.

  De tertio consulatu Honorii                                         VII.

  De quarto consulatu Honorii                                        VIII.

  Panegyrici Manlii Theodori praef.                                   XVI.

  Panegyricus Manlii Theodori                                        XVII.

  De consulatu Stilichonis I                                          XXI.

  De consulatu Stilichonis II                                        XXII.

  De consulatu Stilichonis III. praef.                              XXIII.

  De consulatu Stilichonis III                                       XXIV.

  De sexto consulatu Honorii praef.                                 XXVII.

  De sexto consulatu Honorii                                       XXVIII.

  De bello Gothico praef.                                             XXV.

  De bello Gothico                                                   XXVI.

  c. m. I.: Ad Stilichonem                                           XIII.

  c. m. II.: Descriptio portus Smyrnensis                           LXXXV.

  c. m. III.: Ad Aeternalem                                         LXXXI.

  c. m. IV.: Descriptio armenti                                       LIV.

  c. m. V.: Est in conspectu l.l.                                  LXXXVI.

  c. m. VI.: Rimanti telum ira facit                              LXXVIII.

  c. m. VII.: De quadriga marmorea                                LXXXVII.

  c. m. VIII.: De Polycaste et Perdicca                              LXIX.

  c. m. IX.: De hystrice                                              XLV.

  c. m. X.: De birro castoreo                                        XCII.

  c. m. XI.: In sepulchrum speciosae                                  XCI.

  c. m. XII.: De balneis Quintianis                                LXXXIV.

  c. m. XIII.: In podagrum                                          LXXIX.

  c. m. XIV.: Ad Maximum                                           LXXXII.

  c. m. XV.: De paupere amante                                     LXXXIX.

  c. m. XVI.: De eodem                                                 XC.

  c. m. XVII.: De piis fratribus                                        L.

  c. m. XVIII.: De mulabus Gallicis                                    LI.

  c. m. XIX.: Ad Gennadium                                          XLIII.

  c. m. XX.: De sene Veronensi                                        LII.

  c. m. XXI.: De Theodoro et Hadriano                                LXXX.

  c. m. XXII.: Deprecatio ad Hadrianum                              XXXIX.

  c. m. XXIII.: Deprecatio in Alethium                              LXXIV.

  c. m. XXIV.: De locusta                                         LXXXIII.

  c. m. XXV.: Epithalamium Palladii                            XXX., XXXI.

  c. m. XXVI.: Aponus                                                XLIX.

  c. m. XXVII.: Phoenix                                              XLIV.

  c. m. XXVIII.: Nilus                                              XLVII.

  c. m. XXIX.: Magnes                                              XLVIII.

  c. m. XXX.: Laus Serenae                                           XXIX.

  c. m. XXXI.: Epistula ad Serenam                                     XL.

  c. m. XXXII.: De Salvatore                                          XCV.

  c. m. XXXIII.-XXXIX.: De crystallo                             LVI-LXII.

  c. m. XL.: Epistula ad Olybrium                                     XLI.

  c. m. XLI.: Ad Probinum                                            XLII.

  c. m. XLII.: De apro et leone                                      LIII.

  c. m. XLIII.: In Curetium                                          LXXV.

  c. m. XLIV.: In eundem Curetium                                   LXXVI.

  c. m. XLV.: De concha                                                LV.

  c. m. XLVI.: De chlamyde et frenis                                LXXII.

  c. m. XLVII.: De equo dono dato                                  LXXIII.

  c. m. XLVIII.: De zona equi regii                                   LXX.

  c. m. XLIX.: De torpedine                                          XLVI.

  c. m. L.: In Iacobum                                             LXXVII.

  c. m. LI.: In sphaeram Archimedis                                LXVIII.

  c. m. LII.: Gigantomachia                                        XXXVII.

  De raptu Proserpinae I. praef.                                    XXXII.

  De raptu Proserpinae I.                                          XXXIII.

  De raptu Proserpinae II. praef.                                   XXXIV.

  De raptu Proserpinae II.                                           XXXV.

  De raptu Proserpinae III.                                         XXXVI.




INDEX OF PROPER NAMES


[c. m. = _Carmina minora_]

  Abundantius, xviii. 154

  Academia, xvii. 94

  Achaemenius, x. 224; xxxvi. 264

  Acheloides = the Sirens, xxxvi. 254

  Acheloius, c. m. 30. 174

  Acheron, xxxiii. 87, 227

  Acheronteus, xxxv. 351

  Achilles, v. 180; xi. 7; ix. 19; x. 16; vii. 60; viii. 367, 557; xxi. 99,
    268; c. m. 22. 13; 46. 2

  Achilleus, c. m. 22. 46

  Achivus, xx. 214; xxviii. 440; xxvi. 564; c. m. 46. 7; v. 425; x. 179

  Acis, xxxvi. 332

  Actaeon, v. 419

  Actaeus = Attic, xxxvi. 54

  Actius, xxvi. 185

  Addua, xxviii. 195, 458, 488

  Adherbal, xv. 409

  Adonis, xi. 16

  Adriacus, v. 39

  Aeacides, Pyrrhus, xxvi. 125

  Aeacus, v. 456

  Aeëtes, xxvi. 3

  Aegaeon, the giant, xxxii. 46; xxxvi. 345

  Aegaeus, xx. 246; x. 133; xxi. 287;
    _subst._ = Aegean sea: i. 190; xx. 333; x. 162; c. m. 28. 38; 52. 117

  Aegyptius, xv. 61; xviii. 312; xx. 252; viii. 575

  Aegyptus, iii. 148; xxvi. 57; c. m. 27. 89; 28. 5

  Aelius, a family, xxviii. 420; c. m. 30. 56;
    _cf._ Traianus, Ulpius

  Aemilius Paullus, xxviii. 439;
    Paullus, xxiv. 33; xxvi. 126

  Aeneas, xxi. 98; c. m. 17. 38

  Aeolius, xxvi. 224

  Aeolus, v. 23; vii. 97; c. m. 22. 35; xxxiii. 74

  Aeternalis, c. m. 3. title

  Aether, c. m. 52. 61

  Aethiops, xv. 192; xviii. 179; viii. 35; xvii. 196; xxi. 180, 253, 351;
    xxiv. 337; c. m. 23. 1; 25. 62; 28. 16

  Aethon, steed of dawn, viii. 561; xxxiii. 284 (?);
    one of the Loves, c. m. 25. 140

  Aetna, vii. 161; xxvii. 18; c. m. 17. 4, 33; xxxiii. 153, 154, 190; xxxv.
    8; xxxvi. 186, 330, 399, 438

  Aetnaeus, xvii. 72; xxxiii. 160; xxxvi. 334

  Afer, xv. 84, 510

  Africa, i. 60; xv. 136, 205, 207, 283, 324, 374, 453; viii. 25; xxi. 19,
    275; xxii. 257, 392; xxiv. 105; xxviii. 367

  Agamemnonius, iii. 82; xv. 484

  Aganippe, xvii. 272; c. m. 31. 61

  Aganippeus, c. m. 30. 8

  Agaue, xx. 364

  Aiax, xx. 386

  Alamanni, xxiv. 17

  Alamannia, viii. 449; xxi. 234

  Alanus, xxvi. 583; iii. 312; v. 271; viii. 487; xxi. 109; xxviii. 224;
    xxvi. 581

  Alaricus, xxviii. 105, 154, 180, 223; xxvi. 431, 492, 546, 623

  Alastor, xxxiii. 286

  Albis, x. 278; viii. 452; xxi. 226

  Alcides, xv. 418; viii. 533; xvii. 288; c. m. 22. 15; 30. 174; xxxiv. 9

  Alcinous, c. m. 30. 142

  Alcmena, viii. 536

  Alcyoneus, a giant, xxxvi. 185

  Alethius, c. m. 23. title

  Alexander the Great, xxi. 268.
    See Pellaeus and Porus.

  Allecto, iii. 26, 41; xxxiii. 280

  Allia, xv. 124

  Almon, xv. 119

  Aloeus, a giant, xxvi. 68

  Aloidae, xxvi. 74

  Alpheus, iv. 9; xxi. 186; xxxv. 61; xv. 483; xxvi. 575

  Alpinus, i. 255; v. 304; xv. 295; xii. 9; vii. 99; viii. 106, 637; xvii.
    308; xxi. 317; xxiv. 241; xxvi. 363, 563; c. m. 35. 1; xxxv. 176

  Alpis, i. 74, 105; v. 1, 124, 389; xv. 82, 230, 376; xviii. 432; xx. 505;
    x. 185; vii. 89; viii. 93, 357, 390, 442; xxii. 411; xxiv. 285, 307;
    xxviii. 266, 442; xxvi. 194, 198, 261, 283, 471, 532, 547, 641; c. m.
    22. 37; 50. 3

  Amazon, xviii. 240; xi. 32; xxxv. 62

  Amazonius, xviii. 499; xx. 264; xxxiv. 37

  Ambitio, xxii. 114

  Ambitus, vii. 186

  Amniadae, i. 9

  Amor, xix. 63; x. 7, 47, 73, 97, 140, 153; xxii. 356; c. m. 8. 1; 25. 30,
    110; xxxiii. 27

  Amphinomus, c. m. 17. 41

  Amphion, xxii. 170

  Amphionius, viii. 532

  Amphitrite, x. 175; xxvi. 337
    = the sea; xxxiii. 104

  Amsanctus, xxxv. 350

  Amyclae, xxvi. 193; xxxiii. 135; xxxv. 133

  Anapis, c. m. 17. 41

  Anaxagoras, xvii. 76 (note)

  Anaximenes, xvii. 70 (note)

  Ancus Marcius, xv. 109

  Ancyra, xx. 98

  Ancyranus, xx. 416

  Anguis, constellation, xxii. 458

  Antaeus, a giant, iii. 288; xxxiv. 41

  Antenoreus, -a urbs = Padua c. m. 26. 1

  Antiochus, xviii. 216; xx. 570; xxi. 371

  Antiphates, king of the Laestrygones, c. m. 30. 22

  Aonius, iv. 3; v. 418; xx. 522; xvii. 271; xxii. 171

  Apis, viii. 576

  Apollineus, xx. 257; viii. 133; xxxvi. 310, 373

  Apollo, xi. 8; viii. 537; xxiv. 60; xxviii. 25; c. m. 3. 4;
    see also Phoebus and Delius

  Aponus, c. m. 26. title, 90

  Appenninigena, xxviii. 505

  Appenninus, viii. 106; xxii. 273; xxiv. 307; xxviii. 286

  Aquarius, xxii. 462

  Aquilo, viii. 242; xv. 515; x. 185; vii. 93; xxii. 396; xxvi. 60; c. m.
    2. 3

  Aquilonius, xii. 41

  Arabs, xviii. 226; vii. 71; viii. 258; xxi. 156

  Arar or Araris, v. 111; xviii. 405; xx. 269; xvii. 53; xxvi. 298

  Araxes, i. 160; iii. 376; xv. 31; xx. 569; viii. 387

  Arbogast, vii. 66 (note)

  Arcadia, iii. 286; v. 189; xxvi. 514

  Arcadius, v. 143; xv. 226; vii. 179; viii. 653; xxii. 79

  Arcas, vii. 165; viii. 471; c. m. 44. 4

  Archimedes, c. m. 51. title

  Arctos = the Great Bear, i. 26; xv. 501; viii. 190 (?); xxvi. 66, 246;
    xxxv. 189
    = the North: iii. 325; xv. 511; viii. 51; xxi. 246; xxiv. 93; xxviii.
    336, 455; xxvi. 329; c. m. 52. 11; xxxv. 63

  Arctous, v. 501; xviii. 403; xx. 158, 262; vii. 26, 170; viii. 24, 629;
    xxvi. 299

  Arcturus, i. 25

  Arethusa, iv. 11

  Arethusaeus, xxxv. 60

  Argaeus, the mountain, v. 31; xviii. 248; xx. 114;
    used adjectivally, c. m. 30. 191; 47. 5; 48. 6

  Argi, xxvi. 576, 611; xxxiv. 9

  Argo, xxvi. 2

  Argolicus, xxvi. 629; c. m. 17. 39

  Argous, xxvi. 16

  Argus, xxi. 312

  Aries, the constellation, xxii. 463

  Arinthaeus, xviii. 63, 478

  Arion, viii. 555; xvii. 284; xix. 73 (note)

  Armenius, v. 174; xviii. 47; xix. 55; x. 222; vii. 72; viii. 531; xxi.
    157; v. 29, 108; xv. 243; xx. 307; viii. 307; c. m. 48. 5

  Arsacius, xviii. 415; viii. 216

  Artaxerxes, xx. 476 (note)

  Ascanius, viii. 193

  Asia, iii. 175; v. 36; xviii. 199; xx. 578; xxi. 88

  Assyrius, xviii. 340; xxiv. 164; xxviii. 86; xviii. 58; vii. 36; viii.
    308; xxi. 52; c. m. 27. 87; xxxiv. 96

  Astur, c. m. 30. 75

  Athamanteus, iii. 81

  Athenae, xv. 405; xvii. 94, 152; xxiv. 162

  Athesis, xii. 11; xxviii. 196, 209; c. m. 25. 106

  Athos, iii. 336; xx. 162; viii. 475; xxi. 127; xxvi. 177; c. m. 52. 68

  Atlanteus, i. 35; x. 280

  Atlas, xv. 158, 316; vii. 108; viii. 35; xxi. 147, 249; xxiv. 336;
    xxviii. 104, 380; c. m. 52. 23; xxxiii. 89; xxxv. 191; xxxvi. 324

  Atreus, xv. 400

  Atropos, xv. 203; xxxii. 218

  Attalus, xviii. 215

  Attis, xx. 362

  Avaritia, iii. 37; xxii. 113

  Avarities, vii. 185

  Auchenius, i. 8, 21

  Audacia, iii. 34; x. 81

  Aventinus, xxii. 405

  Avernus, v. 502; xv. 383; xviii. 450; xxxiii. 20, 116; xxxv. 348

  Augusta, legio, xv. 422

  Augustus (Octavianus), xviii. 218; viii. 642; xxviii. 117;
    see also Caesar

  Augustus (Theodosius, Honorius and Arcadius), i. 74, 108; ii. 17; iii.
    245; v. 157, 366, 382; xv. 504; xiii. 8, 9; ix. title; x. 2; vi. title,
    18; vii. 109; viii. title, 4; xvii. 256; xxi. 78; xxii. 166, 233, 289,
    557; xxiv. 122, 178; xxvii. title; xxviii. 17, 362, 393, 617, 658;
    xxvi. 259, 318, 524; c. m. 1. 8, 9; 30. 64, 179; 32. 20; 48. title

  Aulis, xv. 485

  Auriga, the constellation, xxviii. 172

  Aurora, v. 100; xv. 61; xviii. 427; xx. 527; x. 270; vii. 69; viii. 130,
    561; xxi. 155; xxii. 473; xxviii. 84; c. m. 30. 116; 52. 34; xxxv. 46

  Ausonia, xxvi. 291

  Ausonis, -ides, xxvi. 627

  Ausonius, i. 130; v. 82; viii. 566; xxiv. 186; xxviii. 203, 273;
    xxvi. 386

  Auster, iii. 90, 364; v. 348; xv. 1, 487, 515; xx. 261; xii. 43; viii.
    29, 339, 428; xvii. 119; xxi. 269; xxii. 285, 395; xxiv. 71, 103, 345;
    xxviii. 329, 541; xxvi. 59; c. m. 26. 91; 28. 8; 30. 203; xxxv. 200,
    308

  Australis, xviii. 403; xx. 242; vii. 171; xxi. 248; xxiv. 17; c. m. 30.
    45

  Autololes, an African tribe, xxi. 356

  Autumnus, iii. 364; xvii. 119


  Babylon, xviii. 335; xx. 4, 15; vii. 201; viii. 653; xxi. 54

  Babylonius, viii. 146; xxviii. 18

  Baccha, x. 217; xxiv. 365

  Bacchus, x. 271; vii. 208; viii. 604; xxii. 457; xxiv. 227; xxxv. 67;
    _cf._ Bromius, Euhius, Iacchus, Liber, Lyaeus

  Bactra, vii. 202; viii. 656

  Baetis, xii. 31; xvii. 286; xxii. 238

  Balearis, vii. 50

  Balius, Achilles’ horse, c. m. 46. 9

  Barce, xv. 159

  Bartholomaeus, Saint, c. m. 50. 6

  Bastarnae, viii. 450; xxi. 96

  Belga, cattle, xxi. 226

  Bellerophonteus, viii. 560

  Bellona, i. 121; iii. 342; v. 263; xviii. 314; xx. 110, 145; viii. 12;
    xxii. 371; xxvi. 34, 466

  Belus, xxi. 62

  Benacus, c. m. 20. 18; 25. 107

  Berecynthius, xx. 300

  Bessus, xvii. 41; xxvi. 179

  Bisaltae, xxi. 134

  Bistonius, xx. 565; vii. 111; viii. 54; xxviii. 441; xxxiv. 8

  Bithyni, xviii. 201; xx. 239, 467

  Bithynia, xx. 247

  Blemyes, c. m. 28. 19

  Bocchus, xv. 94, 342; viii. 40; xxviii. 383

  Boötes, xv. 501; x. 274; vii. 170; viii. 186; xxi. 123; xxxv. 190;
    xxxvi. 225

  Boreas, viii. 29, 181; xxi. 217; xxii. 285; xxvi. 339; c. m. 22. 36; 30.
    6; 36. 3; xxxiii. 70; xxxvi. 323

  Bosphorus, iii. 174; xv. 225; xx. 28, 340; viii. 129, 177; xxi. 87;
    xxviii. 81

  Brennus, xv. 126; xxvi. 432

  Briareius, xxxvi. 188

  Briareus, xxi. 304

  Britannia, iii. 131; xviii. 393; viii. 73; xvii. 51; xxii. 247; xxvi. 568

  Britannus, v. 149; xv. 19; xxiv. 149; xxvi. 416; viii. 28; xxiv. 301;
    xxvi. 202; c. m. 30. 40

  Britomartis, xxiv. 251, 303

  Bromius, vii. 132; viii. 132; xxiv. 365

  Brontes, one of the Cyclops, vii. 193

  Bructerus, viii. 451

  Brutus, viii. 440, 460; xx. 141; viii. 401; xvii. 163; xxii. 322, 323,
    325, 383; xxiv. 192; xxviii. 642

  Busiris, iii. 254; xviii. 161; xxiv. 43

  Byzantinus, xx. 136

  Byzantius, xix. 57; xx. 415

  Byzas, xx. 83


  Cacus, xxxv. 43

  Cadmeius, x. 155

  Cadmus, xviii. 293; xxi. 318; xxxvi. 387

  Caesar, C. Iulius: xv. 49; viii. 311; xxviii. 400;
    Augustus: c. m. 40. 23;
    = Emperor, viii. 169

  Caesareus, xviii. 458; xii. 29; viii. 313

  Calchedon, x. 27, 451; viii. 177

  Calchedonius, v. 55

  Caledonius, viii. 26; xxii. 247; c. m. 30. 45

  Callaecia, c. m. 30. 71

  Calliope, xvii. 288; c. m. 30. 1

  Calliopea, c. m. 31. 20

  Calydon, c. m. 30. 172

  Calypso, c. m. 30. 24

  Camena, c. m. 30. 15

  Camerina, xxxv. 59

  Camillus, i. 149; xv. 274; xviii. 439; xx. 54, 598; viii. 408; xxii. 390;
    xxvi. 430

  Campanus, xv. 110

  Cancer, the constellation, xxii. 460; c. m. 28. 9

  Canis, the Dog-star, c. m. 38. 33

  Cannae, xxiv. 145; xxvi. 387

  Cannensis, xv. 79

  Cantaber, c. m. 30. 74

  Capaneius, c. m. 30. 151

  Capitolium, viii. 318; xxiv. 32

  Cappadox, v. 31; xviii. 246; xx. 114; c. m. 30. 192; 47. 4

  Capreae, xx. 61; viii. 314

  Caralis, xv. 521

  Carmani, xviii. 354

  Carpathius, x. 137

  Carthago, xv. 77, 87, 190, 518; xviii. 334; xxi. 343, 383

  Carthago nova, xxiii. 15

  Carus, xxv. 74

  Caspius, v. 28; vii. 7; viii. 607; xxxvi. 105

  Castalius, iv. 7; xxviii. 27; c. m. 3. 1

  Castor, i. 244; iii. 108; xi. 6; viii. 556; c. m. 10. 2.
    See Lacones

  Catina, c. m. 17. title

  Cato, xviii. 459; viii. 411; xvii. 165; xxii. 382

  Caucasius, xviii. 247; xx. 152; viii. 108: xxvi. 59; c. m. 27. 32; 31. 7

  Caucasus, iii. 152; xx. 574; xi. 31; vii. 20

  Caucus, viii. 379; xxi. 225

  Caurus, i. 132; v. 222; xv. 495; xx. 5; xii. 42; c. m. 28. 3

  Cecropius, v. 191; xvii. 67; xxxiii. 11

  Celaenae, xx. 258

  Celaenaeus, xxviii. 278

  Celaeno, xx. 378

  Celerina, c. m. 25. title, 23

  Celerinus, _ib._ 72

  Centaurus, ix. 13

  Cepheus, xxvi. 245

  Cephisus, ii. 10; xxxv. 136

  Ceraunia, v. 221; xxi. 174

  Cerberus, v. 457.
    See also xxxiii. 85 and xxxiv. 34

  Ceres, iii. 327; xviii. 325; xx. 270; xxii. 394; xxvi. 350, 466; c. m.
    31. 41; xxxiii. 107, 122, 138, 209, 221, 237; xxxv. 36, 372; xxxvi.
    48, 55, 67, 105, 173, 179, 260, 329, 357

  Chaldaeus, iii. 148; viii. 147; xxi. 61; xxviii. 348

  Chaones, xxvi. 135

  Chaonius, vii. 118; xxxvi. 47

  Chaos, v. 525; xv. 383; xxii. 9; xxxiii. 21; xxxv. 13, 196

  Charybdis, c. m. 30. 20

  Chatti, xxvi. 420

  Chelae, the constellation, xvii. 120

  Cheruscus, viii. 452; xxvi. 420

  Chimaera, iii. 296

  Chiron, ix. 5

  Christus, c. m. 32. 1

  Chrysippus, xvii. 89

  Chrysogonus, xviii. 440

  Chunus, xx. 338; xxi. 110;
    and see Hunus

  Cicero, c. m. 40. 4

  Cilix, v. 33; xviii. 220; xx. 468

  Cimber, vii. 452; xxvi. 293, 645

  Cimbricus, xxvi. 335, 641

  Cimmerius, xviii. 249; xxi. 129

  Cinna, iii. 255

  Cinyphius, xv. 9; xviii. 405

  Cinyps, xxi. 251

  Circaeus, xxii. 134; xxvi. 441

  Circe, iii. 153; c. m. 30. 21

  Cirrhaeus, ii. 2; c. m. 52. 35; xxxiv. 23

  Clarius, xxxiii. 136

  Claudia, c. m. 30. 18, 28

  Claudius, the family, xviii. 456

  Cleantheus, xvii. 88

  Clementia, xvii. 166; xxii. 6, 9

  Cleonaeus, iii. 285

  Clio, xvii. 291

  Clitumnus, xxviii. 506; c. m. 4. 3

  Cloelia, xviii. 447; c. m. 30. 17

  Cocles, xviii. 445; viii. 406; xxviii. 487

  Cocytius, v. 471

  Cocytus, v. 467; xxxiii. 87, 281; xxxv. 353

  Coeus, xxxvi. 347

  Colchus, xxi. 155; xxvi. 3

  Collinus, xv. 86

  Concordia, iii. 52; x. 203

  Constantia, xxii. 108

  Constantinus, xx. 83

  Corinthus, v. 190; viii. 462; xxvi. 612;
    and see Ephyre

  Cornelia, c. m. 30. 42

  Corona, constellation, x. 272; xxiv. 208

  Corsica, xv. 506;
    and see Cyrnos

  Corus. See Caurus

  Corvinus, xviii. 460

  Corybas, xx. 285; viii. 150; xxxiii. 210

  Crassus, xviii. 503

  Cres, c. m. 4. 11

  Cressus, xxiv. 300

  Creta, iii. 289; xviii. 218: viii. 134; xxvi. 442

  Cretaeus, xxiv. 251; c. m. 4. 7

  Crinisus, xxxv. 57

  Croesus, iii. 198; xviii. 213

  Cumanus, xviii. 11; viii. 147

  Cupidineus, x. 71

  Cupido, c. m. 8. 5; 15. 1

  Curae, iii. 38

  Curetes, xx. 281; xxxv. 270

  Curetius, c. m. 43. title, 4; 44. 1

  Curius, iii. 203; xv. 111; xviii. 457; viii. 413; xxii. 379; xxvi.
    124, 132;
    and see Dentatus

  Cyane, xxxv. 61; xxxvi. 190, 246

  Cybebe, xv. 120; xviii. 277; xx. 280; xvii. 301; c. m. 30. 18; xxxiii.
    212; xxxvi. 113, 271.
    See also Cybele.

  Cybele, xv. 130; xviii. 325; c. m. 42. 3; 52. 18; xxxiii. 181; xxxvi. 134

  Cybeleius, viii. 149; xxviii. 259

  Cyclopius, xx. 377; xxxiii. 97.

  Cyclops, vii. 192; xxii. 27; c. m. 30. 24; xxxiii. 239; xxxv. 175, 250;
    xxxvi. 117, 355

  Cydon, viii. 530; c. m. 9. 46

  Cygnus, constellation, xxviii. 173

  Cyllarus, viii. 557

  Cyllenius, Mercury, xxii. 440; xxxiii. 77

  Cymothoë, x. 138, 143, 166; c. m. 30. 127

  Cynthia = Diana, xv. 228; xi. 17; viii. 427; c. m. 27. 38; 51. 10

  Cynthos, viii. 137; xxiv. 259; c. m. 52. 120; xxxv. 245

  Cypros, xix. 52, 72, 76; xx. 21; x. 49, 254

  Cyrnaeus, xxiv. 314

  Cyrnos = Corsica, xvii. 203; xxvi. 218

  Cyrus, iii. 198; xviii. 213

  Cytherea, xv. 128; xix. 62; x. 122, 251; xxii. 439; c. m. 25. 31, 124;
    29. 31; xxxiii. 216; xxxv. 119; xxxvi. 208, 274

  Cythereius, c. m. 30. 119


  Dacicus, xxviii. 335

  Dacus, iii. 310; vii. 28; viii. 318

  Dalmatia, v. 38; vii. 120; xxiv. 302

  Damastor, c. m. 52. 101

  Danae, xviii. 82

  Danaus, -i, xviii. 333

  Danuvius, v. 27; xx. 583; viii. 52, 623; xvii. 235; xxi. 126; xxviii.
    228; xxvi. 331, 523; c. m. 25. 70;
    and see Hister

  Dardanius, c. m. 26. 68

  Darius, c. m. 22. 17

  Decius, i. 47; xviii. 451; viii. 404; xxvi. 130

  Deianira, c. m. 30. 173

  Delia = Diana, xxiv. 261; xxxv. 206; xxxvi. 285

  Delius = Apollo, iv. 6; xxxv. 136;
    adjectivally xxiv. 59

  Delos, i. 185; xi. 8; viii. 133, 135; xxiv. 256; c. m. 52. 115, 125;
    xxxiii. 136; xxxv. 34

  Delphi, iv. 5; xviii. 328; viii. 144; xxviii. 26, 36

  Delphicus, c. m. 52. 34; xxxv. 246

  Democritus, xvii. 75, 82 (note), 90

  Dentatus, xviii. 437;
    and see Curius

  Diana, x. 270; viii. 160; xxiv. 258; c. m. 52. 40; xxxvi. 216, 306.
    See also Cynthia, Delia, Latonia, Luna, Phoebe, Trivia

  Dictaeus, viii. 135; xxiv. 208; xxxiv. 33

  Dictynna, of Lycaste, xxiv. 276

  Dindyma, xx. 173, 262; xxxv. 269

  Diomedes, iii. 254.
    and see Tydides

  Diomedeus, xxviii. 479; xxxiv. 12

  Dionaeus, c. m. 25. 102; xxxv. 5

  Dione, xxxvi. 433

  Dirae, xxxv. 218

  Dircaeus = Theban, viii. 533; xxi. 320

  Dis, iii. 69; v. 522; xxxiii. 26, 227, 266, 286; xxxv. 13, 160, 365.
    See also Pluto

  Discordia, iii. 30

  Dodonaeus, xxvi. 136

  Dodone, vii. 117

  Dodonius, xxxiii. 31

  Dolon, xxviii. 471

  Doris, xvii. 45

  Doto, x. 169

  Drusus, viii. 455; xxi. 193

  Dryas, xi. 22; xxviii. 200; c. m. 25. 17; xxxvi. 78, 271, 381

  Dryopes, xxvi. 185

  Duria, c. m. 30. 72


  Echion, c. m. 52. 104

  Echo, xxviii. 33, 617; c. m. 25. 49

  Edonus, xxi. 123

  Egestas, iii. 36

  Electra, nurse of Proserpine, xxxvi. 171

  Eleus, xvii. 290

  Eleusis, xxxiii. 11

  Elissa = Dido, c. m. 30. 148

  Elusa, iii. 137

  Elysius, xviii. 454; x. 301; xxii. 378; xxvi. 590; xxxv. 284, 323

  Emathius, v. 44; xxvi. 388, 497

  Empedocles, xvii. 72 (note)

  Enceladus, vii. 161; xxvii. 17; c. m. 17. 32, 31, 28; 52. 33; xxxiii.
    155; xxxv. 158; xxxvi. 123, 187, 350

  Enipeus, vii. 116; xxvi. 183; c. m. 52. 71

  Ennius, xxiii. 12

  Enyo, xviii. 238

  Eous, iii. 172; v. 105, 161, 217; xv. 226, 430; xviii. 105, 154, 239,
    371, 400; xix. 36; xx. 1, 113, 350; vii. 8; viii. 215, 374; xvi. 14;
    xvii. 151; xxi. 8, 270, 296; xxii. 292, 306; xxiv. 35; xxviii. 90, 517;
    c. m. 25. 68; 29. 14; 30. 114

  Ephialtes, xxvi. 75

  Ephyre, viii. 471.
    See also Corinthus

  Ephyreias, xxvi. 629

  Ephyreius, xxviii. 90

  Epicurus, xvii. 82 (note)

  Epidaurius, xxiv. 171

  Epimetheus, xx. 497

  Epirus, xx. 215; xxvi. 136

  Erato, xvii. 283

  Erebus, iii. 29; v. 523; xxviii. 184; xxiii. 32, 281; xxxv. 259, 330

  Erechtheus, xviii. 292

  Eridanus, i. 259; vii. 123; viii. 17; xxii. 274; xxviii. 148, 175; xxvi.
    195; c. m. 25. 109;
    and see Padus

  Erinys, xxvi. 173; xxxiii. 226

  Erymantheus, viii. 468; xxxiv. 36

  Erymanthus, xxvi. 192

  Erythraeus, viii. 606; xxviii. 563;
    and see Rubrum mare

  Etruria, xv. 505; xviii. 12, 443

  Etruscus, xv. 110, 417; viii. 145; xxi. 241; xxviii. 489; xxvi. 504;
    xxxvi. 445

  Euandrius, xxviii. 11

  Eucherius, x. 338; xxi. 120; xxii. 352, 358; xxiv. 177; xxviii. 552

  Eugenius, the pretender, i. 108; vii. 41; viii. 75 (notes)

  Euhius = Bacchus, xxiv. 62

  Eumenides, xx. 484; xxxv. 216, 344

  Euphrates, vii. 70; viii. 388; xxi. 54; xxviii. 415

  Euripus, iii. 91

  Europa, v. 36; xv. 4; xxi. 88; xxiv. 281; xxviii. 104

  Eurotas, i. 237; viii. 211; xxi. 181

  Eurus, i. 100; xviii. 504; viii. 649; xxii. 417; xxvi. 58; c. m. 27. 2;
    31. 15, 59

  Eurystheus, xxvi. 378

  Eutropius, xviii. 23, 33, 70, 98, 167, 219, 228, 285, 360, 373, 414, 440,
    448, 459, 472; xx. 21, 178, 304, 346, 365, 386, 481

  Excubiae, x. 80


  Fabius Cunctator, xv. 89; xviii. 437; viii. 407; xxi. 382; xxvi. 139

  Fabricius, iii. 201; xv. 272; xviii. 453; viii. 414; xvii. 165; xxii.
    380; xxiv. 32; xxvi. 131

  Fama, xvii. 270; xxii. 408; xxvi. 201

  Fames, iii. 31; xxviii. 322

  Fanum Fortunae, xxviii. 500

  Faunus, ix. 13; xxviii. 200; c. m. 25. 20; xxxvi. 17, 381

  Favonius, i. 272

  Felix, a cohort, xv. 421

  Fides, iii. 53; xvii. 171; xxii. 30

  Firmus, xv. 333, 343, 347

  Flaccilla, x. 43; c. m. 30. 69, 137

  Flaminia via, xxii. 397; c. m. 40. 8

  Florentinus, xxxiv. 50

  Formido, iii. 343; xxii. 376

  Fortuna, i. 11; iii. 143; v. 194, 421; xv. 504; xviii. 24, 121; xix. 5;
    xx. 551; x. 328; vii. 13; viii. 214; xvii. 2; xxi. 363; xxviii. 1, 88,
    341, 500, 578; xxvi. 513; c. m. 25. 80; xxxiii. 95

  Francia, xxi. 237

  Francus, xviii. 394; viii. 447; xxi. 189, 227; xxii. 243

  Frigidus, the river, vii. 99

  Furia, i. 138; iii. 60, 172, 359; xx. 39; xvii. 170; xxii. 84; xxviii.
    105; c. m. 22. 14; 23. 5; xxxiii. 39; xxxv. 219; xxxvi. 79


  Gabinus, vii. 3; viii. 6; xxii. 307; xxiv. 83; xxviii. 594

  Gades, xv. 159; xviii. 353; viii. 43; xxvi. 202

  Gaetulia, xvii. 306

  Gaetulus, iii. 226; xv. 57, 357; vii. 81; viii. 438; xxi. 258; xxvi. 60;
    c. m. 30. 41; xxxiii. 150

  Galaesus, i. 260

  Galata, xviii. 59, 203; xx. 240, 467

  Galatea, x. 166; c. m. 30. 126; xxxvi. 333

  Gallia, iii. 123; v. 147; viii. 392, 582; xvi. 8; xxi. 20, 317; xxii.
    241; xxiv. 53; c. m. 30. 61

  Gallicus, v. 105; xvii. 308; xxi. 227; xxii. 394; xxiv. 91, 303; xxviii.
    399; xxvi. 296; c. m. 18. title, 20

  Gallus, i. 149; v. 110, 155, 174; xv. 431; xx. 248, 539; x. 119, 182;
   viii. 408, 459; xxi. 350; xxii. 186; xxiv. 143; xxviii. 232; xxvi. 200

  Gallus, river, xx. 263

  Gallus, priest of Cybele, xxxv. 269

  Ganges, i. 163; iii. 293; vii. 203; viii. 610; xvii. 236; xxi. 266

  Garamas, xxi. 255, 355; c. m. 28. 20

  Garganus, viii. 106; xxiv. 308

  Gargara, xxviii. 389; xxxiii. 208

  Garunna, v. 113

  Gela, urbs, xxxv. 58

  Gelonus, i. 119; iii. 313; xv. 245; xx. 103; xi. 3; x. 221; vii. 27;
    viii. 486; xxi. 110; c. m. 52. 76

  Gennadius, c. m. 19. title

  Germania, xv. 372; vii. 18; xxi. 192; xxii. 286; xxiv. 25; xxvi. 423

  Germanicus, viii. 455; xviii. 395

  Germanus, xviii. 379; viii. 74; xvii. 50: xxi. 209; xxii. 243; xxiv. 304

  Geryon, iii. 294; c. m. 4. 2

  Geta, iii. 308, 319; v. 83, 235; xv. 37, 245; xviii. 242; xxi. 111;
    xxviii. 123, 179, 236, 274, 304, 532; xxv. 6; xxvi. 99, 195, 215, 279,
    470, 481, 645; c. m. 25. 89; 30. 235; 52. 77; xxxv. 65

  Geticus, i. 120; iii. 316; iv. 12; v. 36; xx. 176, 274; vii. 147; viii.
    53; xxi. 186; xxviii. 201, 384, 490, 647; xxvi. 30, 247, 380, 528;
    c. m. 40. 15; 50. 9; xxxiii. 71

  Giganteus, xxviii. 185; c. m. 52. 71; xxxiii. 154

  Gigantomachia, c. m. 52. title

  Gigas, viii. 534; xxviii. 45; xxxv. 159; xxxvi. 196, 339

  Gildo, xv. 10, 66, 86, 90, 93, 113, 144, 145, 153, 238, 279, 335, 343,
    383, 410, 427, 489; xviii. 399, 505; xix. 70; xxi. 4, 249, 269; xxii.
    258; xxviii. 105;
    and see Maurus

  Gildonicus, xv. title

  Gir, xxi. 252

  Glaucus, sea-god, x. 158; xxxvi. 12

  Gnosos, c. m. 4. 8

  Gorgo, iii. 280; xxiv. 168; xxvi. 342; c. m. 52. 92; xxxv. 26, 205

  Gorgoneus, viii. 37; c. m. 52. 112; xxxv. 225

  Gortynius, viii. 527; xxviii. 634; c. m. 9. 36; xxxv. 33

  Gothicus, xxvi. title

  Gradivus = Mars, i. 120; iii. 350; xix. 61; xx. 103; x. 190; vii. 167;
    viii. 14; xxii. 368; xxvi. 599.
    See Mars and Mavors

  Graecia, v. 187; xv. 484; xx. 246; viii. 473; xxi. 184

  Graius, xx. 497; xvii. 84; c. m. 19. 3; 30. 15; i. 198; xv. 268; xx. 136,
    250; x. 233; viii. 398, 460; xxviii. 474; xxvi. 515; c. m. 41. 14.

  Gratia, x. 202; c. m. 25. 9; 30. 88

  Gratian, the Emperor, viii. 75 (note)

  Gruthungus, xx. 153, 196, 399, 576; viii. 623, 635

  Gyrrhaeus, c. m. 28. 21


  Hadrianus, c. m. 21. title; 22. title

  Haedi, constellation, xv. 497; c. m. 23. 3

  Haemonius, v. 278; c. m. 52. 66; xxvi. 165

  Haemus, iii. 334, 340; v. 290, 336; xviii. 196; xx. 106, 162, 565; x.
    309; viii. 107; xxi. 131; xxvi. 166, 574; xxxiv. 21

  Haliacmon, xxvi. 179

  Halys, v. 32; xviii. 434; xx. 251; vii. 70; c. m. 48. 6

  Hammon, xviii. 180; viii. 143; xxi. 255

  Hannibal, xv. 83; xviii. 463; xxiii. 22; xxvi. 149, 154, 386;
    and see Poenus

  Harpyiae, xxvi. 22, 28;
    and see Celaeno

  Hasta, xxviii. 203

  Hebrus, i. 123; iii. 332; xx. 165, 414; vii. 147; xxi. 22; xxviii. 108;
    xxvi. 177, 524; c. m. 52. 69; xxxiv. 18

  Hecaërge, xxiv. 253, 308

  Hecate, iii. 155; xxxiii. 15

  Hector, xxi. 98

  Hectoreus, c. m. 22. 13

  Helena, c. m. 30. 148

  Heliades = poplars, xxviii. 164

  Helice, the constellation, xvii. 299

  Helicon, iv. 1; xvii. 272, 279; c. m. 23. 13; 31. 19; xxxv. 134

  Heliconius, c. m. 30. 10; 45. 1

  Hellespontiacus, xviii. 256

  Henna, xxxv. 72, 289

  Hennaeus, xxxiii. 122

  Heraclea, v. 292 (note)

  Heraclitus, xvii. 71 (note)

  Hercules, iii. 79; xviii. 332; xi. 38; viii. 132; xxi. 143; xxxiv. 30.
    See also Alcides, Herculeus

  Herculeus, iii. 284; v. 292; xv. 418; vii. 115, 208; xvii. 302; xxvi.
    377, 438; c. m. 9. 5; 26. 25; 30. 171; 42. 4; xxxiv. 47

  Hercynia, forest, viii. 451; xxi. 228; xxvi. 330

  Hermus, i. 53; iii. 103; xviii. 214; xx. 172; xxiv. 228, 232; xxxv. 68

  Hesperia, i. 168; v. 2; xv. 326; xx. 537; xxviii. 91, 341; xxvi. 317

  Hesperides, viii. 38; xxi. 252; xxiv. 335; c. m. 30. 177

  Hesperius, v. 265; xix. 36; xx. 124; vii. 66; viii. 129; xxvi. 340, 501

  Hesperus, xiv. 2; ix. 16; xxxv. 361

  Hiberia, xxi. 19; c. m. 30. 63;
    and see Hispania

  Hibernia. See Hiverne

  Hiberus, the river, x. 40; xvii. 53

  Hiberus, i. 48; xviii. 407; viii. 20, 587; xxii. 236; xxiv. 309; c. m.
    30. 114; 47. 3; xxxvi. 319; iii. 293; xii. 21; viii. 393; xxi. 155;
    xxiv. 147; c. m. 20. 21.
    See also Hispanus

  Hippolyte, xviii. 333; xi. 35; xxxv. 64

  Hippomenes, c. m. 30. 169

  Hispania, vii. 177; viii. 127; xxii. 230; xxiv. 53; c. m. 30. 50;
    and see Hiberia

  Hispanus, v. 155; xv. 81; xx. 353; xvii. 50; xxiii. 8; xxiv. 142;
    and see Hiberus

  Hister, i. 135; iii. 184, 308; xv. 312; xx. 165, 203; x. 277; vii. 25,
    150; viii. 636; xxi. 215; xxii. 199, 367; xxiv. 13; xxviii. 220, 413,
    648; xxvi. 81, 170, 337, 489, 569, 603; c. m. 25. 127; 50. 7

  Hiverne, viii. 33; xxii. 251

  Homerus, c. m. 23. 13, 15; 30. 141

  Honor, xvii. 8

  Honoriades, x. 341; c. m. 30. 131

  Honorius, iii. 372; xv. 205, 327, 381, 499; xiv. 37; x. 118, 258; vii.
    180; viii. 448; xxii. 62; xxviii. 648; c. m. 30. 95; 48. title.
    See also Augustus, Caesar, etc.

  Horae, i. 278

  Hosius, xx. 346, 446, 559

  Hunus, iii. 321; v. 270;
    and see Chunus

  Hyacinthus, xxxv. 131

  Hyas, xv. 398; xxviii. 173

  Hybla, xxxv. 79

  Hyblaeus, xiv. 8; xxviii. 260: xxxv. 125

  Hydaspes, i. 80; v. 243; viii. 601; xvii. 29; c. m. 40. 13; xxxv. 82;
    xxxvi. 325

  Hydaspeus, vii. 4

  Hymen, x. 312; c. m. 31. 2

  Hymenaeus, ix. 21; viii. 649; x. 202; c. m. 25. 30, 99; 30. 120

  Hypanis, xxviii. 337

  Hyperboreus, v. 240; vii. 56; xxiv. 256; xxviii. 26; c. m. 31. 8

  Hyperionius, xxxv. 44

  Hyrcanus, iii. 227; vii. 35; xxxvi. 263


  Iacchus, xxxiii. 16

  Iacobus, c. m. 50. title, 2, 14

  Ianiculus, xviii. 443

  Ianus, xviii. 319; xxii. 287; xxviii. 638

  Iapetionides, xx. 491.
    See Prometheus and Epimetheus

  Icarius, the Icarian Sea, xx. 265

  Ida and Ide, of Phrygia, xv. 118; xx. 279; x. 18; xxi. 264; xxxiii. 201,
    207; xxxv. 267; xxxvi. 140, 371;
    of Crete, xxiv. 251; c. m. 4. 8

  Idaeus, viii. 197; xxxvi. 49

  Idalius, xiv. 1; x. 101; c. m. 25. 8; xxxv. 16

  Ilia, i. 225

  Illyricum, xx. 216; xxi. 172; xxvi. 535

  Illyricus, i. 60; v. 161, 201; xv. 453; xx. 111; vii. 119; xvii. 202;
    xxii. 207; xxviii. 92; c. m. 30. 62

  Impetus, i. 78

  Inachides = Theban women, xv. 407

  Inachius, i. 196; iii. 278; xxxiv. 9

  Inarime, xxvii. 18; xxxvi. 184

  India, xv. 456; xviii. 225, 357; c. m. 22. 19; 30. 52

  Indus, the river, xx. 102

  Indus, viii. 585; xxiv. 349; c. m. 27. 98; i. 170; iii. 374; v. 242; xv.
    205; xx. 331; x. 217; vii. 211; viii. 257, 609; xxi. 158, 266; xxiv.
    62; xxviii. 415; xxvi. 58; c. m. 20. 17; 27. 2; 29. 15

  Insani montes, xv. 413

  Invicti, a regiment, xv. 423

  Iocasta, xviii. 290

  Iones, xx. 239

  Ionium, the Ionian sea, viii. 461; xxi. 174; xxvi. 222; c. m. 28. 39;
    xxxii. 12

  Ionius, x. 49; vii. 197; xvii. 205; xxviii. 209; c. m. 23. 4; xxxiii.
    149; xxxv. 1

  Iovius, a regiment, xv. 418

  Iris, c. m. 37. 5; 52. 42;
    and see Thaumantis

  Isauri, xviii. 217

  Isthmiacus, iii. 252; viii. 464

  Isthmos, xxvi. 190

  Italia, i. 59; v. 103, 154, 307; xv. 88; xviii. 430; xx. 527; x. 120;
    vii. 121; viii. 360; xvii. 201; xxii. 304; xxviii. 142, 289, 319; xxvi.
    79, 111, 156, 403, 477, 547, 561; c. m. 19. 1; 25. 24; xxxiii. 143;
    xxxvi. 445;
    and see Oenotria

  Italus, xv. 509; i. 254; v. 221; xv. 224; xxiii. 1; xxviii. 24, 181;
    xxvi. 125, 147, 589, 646; c. m. 21. 3

  Ithacus, xxviii. 471.
    See also Ulixes

  Iuba, xv. 332; viii. 39

  Iudaea, xviii. 220

  Iudaicus, xviii. 357

  Iugurtha, xv. 92; xxi. 371; xxvi. 128

  Iugurthinus, xxviii. 381

  Iuleus, xxviii. 116

  Iuno, i. 196; xv. 130; xviii. 325; xx. 330; c. m. 31. 33; xxxiii. 3, 106,
    136; xxxv. 367; xxxvi. 327, 418;
    and see Lucina

  Iunonius, xxviii. 575; xxxv. 97

  Iuppiter, i. 37; iii. 50; xv. 29, 140, 201, 217; xviii. 5; ix. 5; x. 196;
    vii. 167; viii. 197; xvi. 11; xvii. 282; xxii. 7; xxiv. 41, 168, 210,
    227; xxvii. 14, 19; xxviii. 149, 328, 375, 504; xxvi. 18, 63, 101, 379;
    c. m. 4. 4; 23. 2; 30. 123; 43. 3; 51. 1; 52. 30, 52; xxxiii. 67, 93,
    215; xxxv. 108, 228; xxxvi. 1, 36, 174, 327, 359;
    and see Tonans, etc.

  Iustitia, iii. 56, 356; xvii. 117, 190; xxii. 103

  Iuventas, x. 84

  Ixion, xxxv. 335, 337


  Lacaena, xx. 201; xxvi. 630; xxv. 300

  Lacedaemon, v. 189; viii. 508; xvii. 156

  Lachesis, xv. 203; xx. 288; xxii. 335; xxvi. 55; c. m. 26. 93; xxxiii.
    54; xxxv. 354; xxxvi. 411

  Lacones, Castor and Pollux, xv. 222; viii. 206; c. m. 17. 37; 30. 108

  Ladon, xxi. 185; xxiv. 260

  Laërtius, c. m. 30. 32

  Laevinus, M. Valerius, xxvi. 395

  Lais, xviii. 90

  Laodamia, c. m. 30. 150.
    See also Phylacides

  Lares, xxi. 118; xxxiii. 140

  Larius, xxvi. 320; c. m. 25. 106

  Latium, i. 137; v. 84; xv. 335; xviii. 432: xx. 130, 599; viii. 578;
    xvii. 94; xxi. 18, 295; xxiv. 92, 212, 264; xxviii. 89, 94, 130, 351;
    xxvi. 30, 198, 297, 364, 374, 583

  Latius, i. 198; iii. 292; xv. 44, 454; xviii. 151, 465; xx. 237; x. 232;
    vii. 6; viii. 15, 400, 487; xvii. 267; xxi. 353; xxii. 366; xxiv. 34;
    xxviii. 22, 396, 507: xxvi. 141; c. m. 30. 15, 63; 41. 14; xxxv. 177

  Latona, i. 184; xviii. 325; x. 236; c. m. 52. 123, 127; xxxiii. 137;
    xxxvi. 306

  Latonia, v. 420; xvii. 293; xxiv. 238, 346; xxvi. 441; xxxv. 233.
    See also Diana

  Latonius, viii. 133; c. m. 30. 122; xxxiii. 106

  Lechaeum, xxvi. 190

  Leda, xi. 6

  Ledaeus, i. 239; xv. 222; viii. 207; c. m. 30. 108;
    and see Lacones

  Leranius = Vulcan, x. 87;
    adjectivally, xxviii. 572; c. m. 46. 3; xxxvi. 275

  Lemnius, a giant, c. m. 52. 85

  Leo, creature of Eutropius, xx. 377, 379, 432, 440, 453, 559

  Leo, the constellation, i. 25; iii. 365; xxii. 460; xxiv. 209

  Leones, a regiment, xv. 423

  Leontodame, xxiv. 249, 304

  Lernaeus, iii. 290

  Lethaeus, v. 492; xv. 213; c. m. 52. 46; xxxv. 305

  Lethe, xxxiii. 282; xxxv. 218

  Leucates, xxi. 175; xxvi. 186

  Leucippus, xvii. 79 (note)

  Leucothoe, x. 156.
    See also Palaemon

  Liber, xi. 9; viii. 607;
    and see Bacchus

  Libra, constellation, iii. 366

  Libya, iii. 288; v. 41, 154, 241; xv. 4, 52, 63, 113, 146, 282, 334, 462,
    503, 520; xviii. 32, 408; xx. 310; vii. 53, 206; viii. 27, 436; xvii.
    24; xxi. 7, 272, 334, 378; xxii. 385; xxiii. 17; xxiv. 13, 82, 100,
    280, 333; xxviii. 104, 110, 373, 429; xxv. 5; c. m. 28. 15; xxxvi. 445

  Libycus, i. 131; xv. 536; xx. 255; x. 132; xxi. 280; xxiii. 10; xxiv. 24,
    356; xxviii. 620; c. m. 30. 43; 31. 56; xxxiv. 45

  Licentia, x. 78

  Ligus, Ligures, xv. 505; xii. 6; x. 180; viii. 567; xvii. 124; xxviii.
    193, 288, 363, 443; xxvi. 554

  Litybaeus, xxxiii. 150

  Lingonicus, xxiv. 94

  Lipare, vii. 196; xxxv. 174

  Liris, i. 260

  Livia, x. 13

  Livor, iii. 32

  Lucifer, v. 366; vii. 131; viii. 563; xxii. 472; xxxv. 121

  Lucina, i. 145; xviii. 74; xxii. 342; c. m. 30. 47; xxxiii. 123;
    xxxvi. 307

  Lucretia, xviii. 446; c. m. 30. 153

  Luctus, iii. 33; xxviii. 323

  Luna, i. 22; xv. 223; x. 114; xxii. 438; xxiv. 288; c. m. 27. 61; 44. 6;
    xxxv. 45; xxxvi. 403

  Lutatius Catulus, xviii. 455

  Luxuries, xv. 183

  Luxus, iii. 35

  Lyaeus, xv. 445; xx. 294, 435; x. 216; xxiv. 362; xxviii. 562; xxvi. 349;
    xxxv. 353;
    and see Bacchus

  Lycaeus, xxviii. 199; viii. 467; xxi. 181; xxiv. 249; c. m. 25. 48,
    xxxv. 18

  Lycaonius, xvii. 299; xxvi. 246

  Lycaste, xxiv. 252, 276, 292

  Lycia, xviii. 204

  Lycurgus, viii. 509; xvii. 153

  Lydia, iii. 197; xviii. 203; xx. 295; xi. 9; x. 215; viii. 603; xxiv. 62;
    and see Maeonius

  Lydius, i. 53; xxxiii. 275

  Lydus, xx. 241, 578


  Macedo, xxiv. 165; xxvi. 180

  Macetae, v. 279; xx. 147; xvii. 28

  Maeander, xx. 266, 268, 292

  Maeandrius, xxviii. 635

  Maenades, v. 419; xx. 523; viii. 609;
    and see Pentheus

  Maenala, i. 187; viii. 470; xvii. 291; xxi. 182; xxiv. 250; xxvi. 575;
    xxxiii. 230; xxxv. 244

  Maenalius, viii. 161; c. m. 25. 36

  Maeon, xx. 245

  Maeones, xx. 246

  Maeonius, iii. 166; xx. 464; x. 234; viii. 602; c. m. 30. 20; xxxiii.
    19; xxxv. 68;
    and see Lydia

  Maeotia, i. 36

  Maeotis, xv. 243; iii. 312; xxvi. 57

  Maeotius, xx. 334; viii. 180; xxviii. 338

  Magnes, c. m. 29. title

  Magnus = Pompey, xviii. 502

  Maia, xxxiii. 76

  Manes, v. 165; c. m. 52. 44; xxxiii. 41, 267; xxxv. 14, 328

  Manlius Theodorus, xvii. title, 135, 275; c. m. 21. 1, 4; xvii. 340.
    See also Theodorus

  Mantua, c. m. 30. 147.
    See also Vergilius

  Marcellus, M. Claudius, xv. 89; xviii. 456; xxvi. 140

  Marcomeres, xxi. 241.
    See also Sunno

  Marcus Aurelius, xxviii. 340, 350

  Maria = the Virgin Mary, c. m. 32. 7

  Maria, mother of Serena, c. m. 30. 69;
    daughter of Stilicho, xv. 528; xiv. 37; x. 11, 37, 119, 173, 251, 275,
    340; xxii. 239, 342

  Marica, i. 259

  Marius, xv. 92; viii. 641; xxiv. 35; xxvi. 126, 646

  Marmaricus, xviii. 180

  Maro, c. m. 23. 12; 40. 23;
    and see Vergilius

  Mars, v. 56, 188, 351, 501; xv. 85, 273, 415; xviii. 277; xix. 20; xx.
    567; xiii. 4; vii. 73; viii. 18, 90, 321, 456, 526; xvii. 163; xxi.
    190, 336; xxii. 15, 276, 437; xxiv. 35, 211; xxviii. 10, 91, 210, 283,
    307, 624; xxvi. 26, 69, 258, 280, 339, 468, 507, 623; c. m. 1. 4; 29. 25;
    30. 199; 42. 3; 44. 3; 52. 38; xxxiii. 134, 135;
    and see Mavors, Gradivus, etc.

  Marsya, xx. 266

  Marsyas. See Celaenae

  Martius, xviii. 438, 505; viii. 539; xxii. 349; xxiii. 20; xxxv. 147

  Mavors, i. 96, 99; iii. 334; iv. 17; xv. 129; xviii. 238; xxi. 270; xxvi.
    491; c. m. 29. 22; 52. 75;
    and see Mars, Gradivus, etc.

  Mavortius, x. 187; vii. 135; xxiv. 191; xxvi. 35; c. m. 25. 70; 29. 33;
    46. 12; 52. 87

  Mascezel, xv. 390

  Massagetes, iii. 312; viii. 542

  Massylus, xv. 284; xviii. 389; viii. 25; xxii. 394; xxviii. 377; xxvi.
    148; xxxiv. 28

  Maurus, xv. 452; xxiv. 344; xv. 95, 189, 288, 330, 351, 433; xviii. 400,
    505; x. 219; vii. 54; viii. 28; xxi. 19, 249, 357; xxii. 261; xxiv. 19;
    = Gildo, xv. 70, 236, 283, 338, 380; xix. 71; xxi. 383; xxii. 286;
    xxviii. 122

  Maurusius, xv. 344; viii. 39; xxiv. 278; xxviii. 104

  Maximus, the pretender, i. 108; viii. 75 (notes)

  Maximus, c. m. 14. title, 1

  Mazax, xxi. 356

  Medea, iii. 353

  Medus, i. 161; iii. 335, 374; xviii. 321; xx. 102, 478; x. 224; vii. 71;
    viii. 258; xvii. 152; xxi. 67, 157; xxiv. 163, 164; xxviii. 415; xxvi.
    187

  Medusa, iii. 281;
    and see Gorgo

  Megaera, iii. 74, 354; xxxvi. 387

  Melampus, xviii. 315

  Memnon, xx. 530; xxi. 265, 268

  Memphis, xv. 56; viii. 570; xvii. 127

  Meroë, i. 135; xv. 454; xviii. 178; x. 223; vii. 21; xxi. 261; c. m. 25.
    73; 28. 19; 40. 15

  Metaurus, xxviii. 501

  Metellus, i. 147; xv. 91; xviii. 218

  Mettius Fufetius, viii. 402

  Metus, i. 78; x. 82; xxii. 373

  Mida, xx. 261; xxiv. 230, 232

  Mimas, c. m. 52. 85; xxxvi. 347

  Mincius, xii. 13; xxviii. 197; c. m. 25. 108

  Minerva, i. 84; xviii. 273, 328; xx. 256, 591; viii. 162; xxii. 228, 340;
    xxiv. 226; xxvi. 16; c. m. 22. 41; 52. 41; xxxvi. 218;
    and see Pallas, Tritonia

  Minoius, xxxv. 332

  Minos, iii. 114; v. 477

  Minous, xxvi. 443

  Mithras, xxi. 63

  Mnemosyne, x. 237

  Moesi, v. 46; xxvi. 165

  Moesia, viii. 53

  Molossi, xxvi. 135; v. 420; xxii. 215; xxiv. 293

  Morbus, iii. 32; xxviii. 323

  Mors, iii. 238

  Mucius Scaevola, xviii. 445; viii. 406

  Mulciber, i. 95; xx. 33; x. 58; vii. 191; xvii. 327; xxi. 104; c. m. 17.
    33; xxxv. 175; xxxvi. 397.
    See also Vulcanus

  Mulvius, xxviii. 544

  Murcia, xxii. 404

  Musa, ii. 13; iv. 16; viii. 396; xvii. 66, 138; xxi. 181; xxii. 5, 127;
    xxiii. 5, 19; xxvii. 11; xxviii. 125, 475; xxv. 10; xxvi. 598; c. m.
    3. 3; 22. 51; 25. 31, 46; 26. 7; 30. 162; 40. 24; 44. 4; xxxiv. 51

  Mycalaeus, xx. 265

  Mycenae, xv. 287, 399; xxxvi. 388

  Mygdonius, xx. 1, 408; xvii. 300; xxxv. 268

  Myrtilus, c. m. 30. 168

  Mytilenaeus, x. 235


  Naias, xxviii. 153

  Nais, i. 249; xi. 24; c. m. 45. 1; xxxv. 56; xxxvi. 17

  Napaeae, c. m. 30. 87

  Nar, i. 256;
    _cf._ xxviii. 516

  Narcissus, the flower, xxxv. 132;
    freedman of the Emperor Claudius, xviii. 441

  Narnia, xxviii. 515

  Nasamon, xv. 192; xxi. 256, 354

  Natura, viii. 199; xxii. 432, 442; c. m. 27. 62; 29. 38; 52. 62; xxxiii.
    148. 250; xxxv. 371; xxxvi. 33

  Nebrophone, xxiv. 250, 315

  Neptunius, c. m. 30. 129

  Neptunus, iii. 279; xx. 37; x. 155; vii. 197; viii. 463; xxiv. 265;
    c. m. 52. 38, 119; xxxiii. 104; xxxv. 181

  Nereis, i. 202; xix. 68; x. 159, 283; viii. 555; c. m. 30. 80

  Nereius, viii. 592; xxxiii. 103

  Nereus, iii. 183; v. 303; xx. 34; x. 157; xxiv. 360; xxviii. 496; xxvi.
    320; xxxiii. 144; xxxvi. 11

  Nereus (adj.; of Thetis), vii. 116

  Nero, xx. 61; viii. 313

  Nerva, xxviii. 420

  Nervius, a regiment, xv. 421

  Niliacus, xv. 59; c. m. 25. 123

  Niloticus, viii. 574

  Nilus, i. 38, 169; iii. 185; v. 244; xv. 52, 114, 158, 456, 476; xviii.
    14, 316; xix. 39; x. 51, 223; vii. 207; viii. 44, 388; xvii. 232; xxi.
    179, 253; xxii. 416; xxviii. 86; xxvi. 57; c. m. 19. 3; 22. 58; 25. 73;
    27. 72, 100; 28. title, 7, 28, 29, 31, 36; 31. 13; xxxiv. 43

  Niobe, xx. 405

  Niphates, xviii. 16; vii. 72; xxxvi. 263

  Noricus, xxvi. 365

  Notus, i. 271; v. 244; xv. 64, 459; vii. 140; viii. 173; xxi. 179;
    xxviii. 176; xxvi. 205; c. m. 25. 144; 34. 6; xxxii. 8; xxxiii. 92,
    242; xxxv. 248; xxxvi. 323

  Nox, iii. 30; xxxv. 363

  Nuba, xxi. 254

  Numa, iii. 114; viii. 493; xxiv. 167; xxvi. 101

  Numida, xxi. 257; xv. 93, 409; xxiv. 35

  Nycteus, xxxiii. 285

  Nympha, i. 213, 263; x. 74; xxii. 345; xxiv. 258; xxviii. 158; c. m. 26.
    7; 30. 78, 175; 52. 120, 121; xxxiv. 3; xxxv. 67, 76, 204; xxxvi. 4,
    172, 230.
    See also Napaeae

  Nysa, viii. 604

  Nysaeus, xx. 171


  Occidens, xii. 37

  Oceanus, i. 216; iii. 124, 197; v. 114; xv. 455; xviii. 492; xx. 23, 248;
    xii. 34; x. 161, 281; vii. 176; viii. 22, 42; xvii. 108; xxi. 160, 215;
    xxii. 249, 409; xxiii. 8; xxiv. 148; xxviii. 499; xxvi. 203, 640; c. m.
    25. 91; 27. 1; 30. 41, 74; 52. 11; xxxiii. 270; xxxvi. 172, 269

  Odothaeus, viii. 626, 632

  Odrysius, iii. 175; iv. 18; vii. 147; c. m. 52. 76; v. 425; xxvi. 178

  Oebalia, i. 260

  Oebalius, xvii. 158

  Oedipodes, iii. 84; xviii. 289

  Oenomaus, c. m. 30. 168

  Oenotria, xxii. 262; xxvi. 146

  Oenotrius, -a tellus, xxvi. 310

  Oeta, vii. 114; xxvi. 182; c. m. 52. 66

  Oetaeus, v. 181; ix. 8; xxii. 29

  Olbia, xv. 519

  Olybrius, i. title, 30, 243; c. m. 40. title, 17

  Olympus, iii. 50; v. 182; xv. 18, 148; xviii. 140; ix. 21; x. 300; vii.
    33; viii. 230; xvii. 79, 206; xxiv. 135; xxvii. 23; xxviii. 101, 169,
    351; xxvi. 180, 511; c. m. 31. 21; xxxv. 183, 257; xxxvi. 18, 269

  Ophion, iii. 348

  Opis, xxiv. 254, 277, 292

  Orcades, viii. 32

  Orcus, iii. 294

  Orestes, iii. 107; xxviii. 113; c. m. 22. 14

  Oresteus, c. m. 40. 18

  Oriens, v. 30; xviii. 17, 396; xx. 131, 566; xii. 36; viii. 70; xxi. 8,
    277; xxiv. 81; xxviii. 92

  Orion, i. 28; xv. 498; vii. 171; xxi. 287; xxviii. 177; xxxv. 191

  Orontes, v. 35; xviii. 434; xx. 115; vii. 70; xxiv. 158; xxxvi. 373

  Orpheus, x. 234; c. m. 18. 19; 31. 1, 33; xxxiv. 1

  Orpheus (adjective), vii. 114; xvii. 252; xxii. 172; c. m. 23. 11;
    xxxiv. 24

  Orphnaeus, xxxiii. 284

  Ossa, v. 182; ix. 22; viii. 108; xxi. 12; xxvi. 76; c. m. 52. 68; xxxiv.
    20; xxxv. 257

  Ossaeus, xxxv. 183

  Ostrogothi, xx. 153

  Othrys, ix. 22

  Otus, xxvi. 74


  Pachynum, xv. 142; xxxiii. 148

  Pactolus, i. 54; iii. 103; xviii. 214; xx. 172; xxiv. 61

  Padus, xviii. 376; xii. 14; xvii. 200; xxviii. 212, 303, 495; xxvi. 532;
    c. m. 31. 12; xxxv. 178;
    and see Eridanus

  Padusa, c. m. 25. 109; 26. 1

  Paean, ii. 11; xxvi. 598; c. m. 52. 125

  Paeonius, xx. 12; xxiv. 173; xxvi. 121; c. m. 26. 67

  Paestanus, x. 237

  Palaemon, x. 156; viii. 465;
    and see Leucothoe

  Palaemonius, xvii. 289

  Palatinus, xv. 118; viii. 11; xxii. 228; xxviii. 35, 543

  Palladium, the, xv. 129

  Palladius, c. m. 25. title, 25, 64

  Pallanteus, xxii. 405; xxviii. 644.
    See Palatinus

  Pallas, son of Euander, xxi. 97

  Pallas, the goddess, xviii. 272; xxii. 275; xxiv. 210; c. m. 52. 110;
    xxxiii. 230; xxxv. 39, 206, 215; xxxvi. 209;
    and see Minerva

  Pallas, the giant, c. m. 52. 95

  Palleneus, c. m. 52. 109

  Pallor, x. 81; xxviii. 322

  Pamphyli, xx. 465

  Pan, xxviii. 199

  Panchaeus, x. 94

  Panchaia = Arabia, vii. 211; xxxv. 81

  Pandionius, xv. 406; viii. 508; xxxv. 19

  Pangaea, iii. 337; xx. 105; viii. 179; xxi. 134; c. m. 52. 67

  Pannonia, v. 45

  Pannonius, xxii. 192

  Pantagias, xxxv. 58

  Paphius, xix. 65; x. 148, 254

  Paphos, xxxv. 155

  Paraetonius, xv. 160

  Parcae, iii. 157; xv. 121; xx. 461; c. m. 11. 1; 26. 87; 27. 109; xxxiii.
    48; xxxv. 6, 305.
    See Atropos and Lachesis

  Parnasius, xxviii. 122; i. 71

  Parnasus, ii. 5; xvi. 15

  Parrhasius, xxi. 185; xxvi. 191; xxxv. 18

  Parthenius, xxi. 183; xxxv. 148, 241

  Parthia, xv. 38; xviii. 416; x. 225

  Parthicus, xviii. 342; c. m. 25. 74; xxxiii. 17; xxxv. 94

  Parthus, c. m. 27. 84; i. 80; xx. 476; xi. 2; vii. 72, 201; viii. 214,
    317, 531; xxi. 55, 68; c. m. 9. 21, 47; xxxv. 200;
    and see Perses

  Pater = Iuppiter, i. 207; xxxiii. 118

  Patientia, xxii. 105

  Paullus. See Aemilius

  Paulus = S. Paul, c. m. 50. 1

  Pavor, iii. 343; xxii. 373

  Pax, xvii. 171

  Pegaseus, iii. 263; c. m. 45. 4

  Pegasus, viii. 558

  Pelion, i. 203; v. 44; ix. 1; vii. 115; viii. 108; xxi. 12; xxvi. 74

  Pella, xvii. 28

  Pellaeus = Alexander the Great, viii. 374;
    adjectivally, xv. 269; xviii. 483; xxiv. 33; c. m. 22. 16

  Pelopea, xviii. 291

  Pelopeius, v. 188

  Pelops, x. 216; c. m. 30. 167

  Pelorus, the promontory, xxviii. 287; xxvi. 222; xxxiii. 152; xxxvi. 255

  Pelorus, the giant, c. m. 52. 79

  Pelusiacus, c. m. 27. 97

  Penelope, c. m. 30. 25, 31

  Peneus, ix. 7; xxxv. 180

  Penthesilea, xviii. 334

  Pentheus, v. 418; xx. 523; xxii. 213

  Perdicca, c. m. 8. title

  Perfidia, xvii. 169

  Pergama, viii. 366

  Pergus, xxxv. 12

  Perithous, iii. 107

  Periurium, x. 83

  Permessius, c. m. 30. 8

  Persephone, xxxvi. 244.
    See Proserpina

  Perses, the king, xxi. 372

  Perses = Persian, xx. 482; viii. 145; xxiv. 164, 165; xxviii. 70; c. m.
    47. 13.
    See also Parthus

  Perseus, iii. 278, 280

  Persis, vii. 204; xxi. 57

  Petrus = S. Peter, c. m. 50. 1

  Peuce, viii. 630; xxviii. 105

  Phaëthon, v. 211; viii. 63; xxviii. 166, 187; xxxvi. 403

  Phaëthonteus, i. 258; vii. 124; xxvii. 107

  Phalaris, iii. 253; xv. 186

  Pharao, c. m. 50. 8

  Pharius, c. m. 21. 2, 4; xv. 57; xviii. 482; x. 50; viii. 575; xxviii.
    86; c. m. 27. 73; 28. 1; 30. 60

  Pharos, xviii. 218; c. m. 22. 57

  Pharsalicus, xxviii. 400

  Pharsalius, x. 291

  Phasis, iii. 376; xviii. 245; xx. 575; vii. 72

  Philippus, of Macedon, father of Alexander the Great, xv. 268; viii. 375;
    xvii. 31;
    Philippus the Third, xxi. 372; xxvi. 388, 396

  Phlegethon, iii. 119; v. 467; c. m. 26. 72; xxxiii. 24; xxxv. 315; xxxvi.
    390

  Phlegethonteus, xxxiii. 88

  Phlegra, c. m. 52. 4; xxxv. 255; xxxvi. 201

  Phlegraeus, xxvii. 20; c. m. 31. 27; xxxvi. 337

  Phoebe, iii. 9; xviii. 324; x. 15; xvii. 130; xxiv. 295; xxvi. 233;
    xxxv. 39; xxxvi. 209.
    See also Diana and Luna

  Phoebeus, ii. 1

  Phoebus, i. 56, 188, 268: ii. 11; iii. 129; v. 104; xviii. 327, 397; xx.
    46; xii. 40; ix. 17; vii. 9, 166; viii. 175, 286; xxii. 302, 440; xxiv.
    42, 334; xxviii. 30, 412; xxvi. 75, 244; c. m. 3. 1; 27. 48; 52. 10,
    39, 121; xxxiii. 6, 134, 135; xxxiv. 48; xxxv. 28

  Phoenices, viii. 601

  Phoenix, xxii. 417; c. m. 27. title; 31. 15

  Pholoë, xxxiv. 44

  Pholus, ix. 14

  Phorcus, xxxvi. 11

  Phrixeus, xxii. 463

  Phrygia, xx. 170, 238, 274, 289, 296, 356

  Phrygius, xv. 119; xviii. 280; xx. 254, 401, 530; ix. 20; vii. 120; viii.
    194; xxiv. 170; c. m. 17. 38; 30. 191; xxxiii. 180; xxxv. 267; xxxvi.
    103, 114, 424

  Phryx, xx. 154; xviii. 205; xx. 244, 252

  Phylacides, c. m. 30. 151.
    See Laodamia

  Pictus, xviii. 393; vii. 24; viii. 32; xxii. 254; xxvi. 418

  Pierides, iii. 24; c. m. 31. 61

  Pierius, i. 150; iv. 20; vi. 15; xxi. 23; xxiii. 3; xxviii. 123; c. m.
    30. 2, 146

  Pietas, iii. 53; xvii. 168

  Pincius, xxii. 401

  Pindus, xxiv. 302; xxvi. 184

  Pisae, xv. 483

  Pisaeus, c. m. 30. 166

  Pisidae, xx. 241, 465

  Pii Tranquilli, xxviii. 421

  Placidia, xxii. 356 (note)

  Plato, xvii. 149

  Platonists, xvii. 83 (note)

  Plaustrum, constellation, i. 26; xv. 501; xxvi. 247

  Pleias, viii. 438; xxvi. 209

  Pluto, xxxiii. 278,
    and see Dis

  Poenus, xxi. 258; xxiv. 102; xxxvi. 166; i. 148; xv. 83, 509; xviii. 455;
    xvii. 201; xxii. 190, 383; xxiv. 8, 71, 143; xxvi. 138, 148;
    and see Punicus

  Pollentia, xxviii. 202, 281; xxvi. 635

  Pollentinus, xxviii. 127

  Pollux, i. 244; iii. 108;
    and see Lacones

  Polycaste, c. m. 8. title

  Polyidus, xxiv. 446 (note)

  Polyphemus, xxxvi. 356;
    and see Cyclops

  Pompeianus, xviii. 221; xxii. 403

  Pompeius, xxiv. 36; xviii. 481.
    See also Magnus

  Pontus, v. 38; xv. 225; xviii. 203; xx. 264; xxi. 129, 370

  Porphyrion, c. m. 52. 35, 115

  Porsenna, xv. 123; xviii. 444; xxviii. 488

  Porus, viii. 375; xvii. 32; xxi. 267, 268; c. m. 22. 19

  Pothinus, xviii. 481.
    See also Pompeius

  Priamus, c. m. 22. 15

  Proba, i. 192

  Probinus, i. title, 29, 244; c. m. 41. title, 18

  Probus, i. 32, 57, 62, 75, 143, 167, 173, 199

  Prometheus, xx. 492; viii. 229; c. m. 52. 22;
    and see Iapetionides

  Promotus, xxi. 95

  Propontis, xx. 333

  Proserpina, c. m. 52. 44; xxxii. title; xxxm. 27, 126, 217, 246; xxxv.
    5, 204, 247, 277; xxxvi. 70, 83, 100, 284, 407.
    See also Persephone

  Proteus, x. 51; c. m. 30. 128; xxxvi. 13

  Prudentia, xxii. 107

  Psamathe, x. 167

  Ptolomaeus, xviii. 61, 66, 480

  Pudicitia, i. 195

  Punicus, xv. 59; viii. 410; xxi. 380; xxiii. 2; c. m. 30. 60;
    and see Poenus

  Pygmaeus, c. m. 31. 13

  Pylades, iii. 108

  Pyragmon, vii. 195; xxxiii. 240

  Pyrenaeus, xxvi. 200; xviii. 406; xxiv. 313; c. m. 30. 77

  Pyrois, c. m. 25. 141

  Pyrrha, xv. 43

  Pyrrhon, xvii. 75 (note)

  Pyrrhus, king of Epirus, xv. 125; xviii. 463; viii. 414; xxi. 371; xxiv.
    32; xxvi. 125, 128, 132, 145, 154;
    son of Achilles, viii. 366

  Pythagoras, xvii. 91, 157

  Pythius, xvi. 16; xxv. 4

  Python, i. 189; ii. 1, 15; viii. 537


  Quintianus, c. m. 12. title

  Quinctius Cincinnatus, xv. 111

  Quirinalis, xviii. 28: viii. 157

  Quirinus, viii. 8, 492; xxii. 370; xxiv. 99; xxviii. 9, 642, 652; xxvi.
    101, 639

  Quiris, Quirites, xii. 17; xviii. 409; xx. 136; xxii. 391; xxiv. 54;
    xxviii. 587, 652; xxvi. 451


  Raeti, xxviii. 232

  Raetia, viii. 442; xxvi. 279, 330, 340, 414

  Ravenna, xxviii. 494

  Regulus, xv. 79; viii. 411; xxi. 381

  Rhadamanthys, v. 480

  Rhamnusius, xxvi. 631

  Rhenus, i. 161; iii. 133; v. 112; xv. 312, 374; xviii. 395; xx. 251; x.
    278; vii. 18; viii. 440, 457, 652; xvii. 54; xxi. 20, 196, 202, 220;
    xxii. 246; xxiv. 13, 25, 305; xxviii. 413; xxvi. 331, 336, 422, 569;
    c. m. 25. 91; 46. 13; xxxvi. 321

  Rhesus, xxviii. 473, 482

  Rhodanus, v. 111; xviii. 404; xx. 269; xvii. 53; xxi. 159; xxii. 393;
    xxiv. 158; xxvi. 300; c. m. 18. 1

  Rhodius, xxiv. 226

  Rhodope, iii. 335; v. 291; xx. 163; viii. 50; xxi. 130; xxvi. 177; c. m.
    52. 69; xxxiii. 135; xxxiv. 19

  Rhodopeius, vii. 113; viii. 526; c. m. 22. 37

  Rhoetos, ix. 13

  Riphaeus, iii. 242; xx. 151; vii. 149; xxi. 124; xxviii. 31; xxxvi. 321

  Roma, i. 19, 79, 133; v. 54; xv. 17, 60, 131, 204, 207, 208, 460; xviii.
    372, 384, 435; xx. 128, 339; xii. 20; vi. 16; viii. 361, 503, 583;
    xvii. 269; xxi. 309, 376, 385; xxii. 224, 269, 377, 408; xxiii. 23;
    xxiv. 2, 27, 51, 78, 96, 180, 225; xxviii. 78, 87, 192, 211, 295, 360,
    432, 438, 451, 492, 530, 602; xxvi. 51, 77, 96, 264, 362, 375, 450,
    477, 505, 511, 533, 647; c. m. 30. 58

  Romanus, xv. 270; xx. 229; viii. 309; xxi. 348; xxiv. 166; xxviii. 298;
    i. 163, 193; iii. 283, 307; v. 4, 52, 206; xv. 95, 242, 457; xviii.
    221, 374, 462; xx. 159, 225, 477, 576; x. 225, 315; vii. 67; viii. 59,
    219, 398, 522; xvi. 7; xvii. 37, 84; xxi. 1, 224, 240, 374; xxii. 205,
    402; xxiv. 8, 30, 84, 160; xxviii. 12, 75, 150, 418, 551, 598; xxv. 2;
    xxvi. 84, 232, 288, 382, 390, 490, 539, 571, 633; c. m. 19. 2; 30. 189;
    41. 13; 50. 10

  Romuleus, i. 97, 226; xv. 75; xx. 62; vii. 1; viii. 619; xxi. 331; xxii.
    366; xxiv. 124; xxviii. 57; xxvi. 332

  Romulus, xx. 142; xxvi. 261

  Rubicon, xxviii. 365; c. m. 19. 1

  Rubrum mare, iii. 278; v. 242; xv. 33, 454; xviii. 16; x. 168; vii. 210;
    viii. 600; c. m. 25. 61; 29. 15; 30. 4; 31. 14; 39. 2; xxxvi. 320

  Rufinus, iii. 20, 92, 140, 189, 256, 314, 361; v. 7, 92, 130, 212, 219,
    294, 319, 338, 367, 424, 496, 513; xv. 304; xx. 539, 550; c. m. 30. 233


  Sabaeus, xviii. 321; viii. 306; x. 210; xxi. 58; c. m. 27. 43

  Sabinus, xv. 106

  Saces, xxi. 157

  Sacra via, xxviii. 604

  Salius, xxi. 222

  Salmoneus, v. 514; c. m. 51. 13

  Salus, c. m. 30. 189

  Salvator, c. m. 32. title

  Sangarius, xx. 263, 291

  Sapor, xx. 481

  Sappho, x. 23

  Sardinia, xv. 508; xvii. 203

  Sardonius, xxvi. 218

  Sarmata, iii. 310; xx. 338; xiv. 15; viii. 485; xxi. 111

  Sarmaticus, i. 132; vii. 148; c. m. 25. 88

  Saturnius, c. m. 52. 16; vii. 168; xxi. 178; xxxvi. 20

  Saturnus, xxii. 439; c. m. 43. 2; 44. 7; xxxiii. 114; xxxv. 168, 280;
    xxxvi. 272

  Satyri, viii. 608; xxiv. 364

  Savus, xxii. 192

  Saxo, xviii. 392; x. 219; viii. 31; xxii. 225; c. m. 25. 89

  Schoeneis, c. m. 30. 170

  Scipiades, i. 149; xviii. 455; xxi. 381; xxii. 384; xxiii. 1, 21; xxvi.
    141; c. m. 30. 42

  Scipio, xv. 95

  Sciron, iii. 253

  Scironius, xxvi. 188

  Scorpius, the constellation, xxii. 465

  Scotticus, xxii. 254

  Scottus, vii. 55; viii. 33; xxii. 251; xxvi. 417; c. m. 25. 90

  Scylla, iii. 296; xviii. 294; c. m. 30. 21

  Scyllaeus, xxxvi. 447

  Scyria = Deidamia, x. 16

  Scytha, xviii. 508; xi. 25

  Scythia, iii. 308, 323; xvii. 197; xxiv. 255; xxvi. 602; xxxvi. 282

  Scythicus, i. 160; iii. 152; xviii. 248; xx. 180, 238; vii. 27; viii.
    474; xxii. 368; c. m. 23. 2; 25. 135; 52. 22

  Semiramis, xviii. 339

  Semiramius, i. 162

  Senectus, iii. 31

  Senium, x. 85

  Senones, iii. 132; xv. 126; xxiv. 92; xxvi. 291

  Serena, xv. 310: x. 120, 252; xxi. 73; xxviii. 93; c. m. 30. title, 2, 33,
    49, 69, 118; 31. title, 34, 47; 45. 3; 46. 14; 47. 12; 48. title, 11

  Seres, i. 179; xviii. 226, 304; x. 211; vii. 211; viii. 258, 601

  Serranus, iii. 202; xviii. 454; viii. 415

  Servilius, Isauricus, xviii. 217

  Severi, xxviii. 421

  Sibylla, xv. 29; xix. 38; viii. 148; xxiv. 166

  Sibyllinus. See Cumanus

  Sicania, xviii. 456; xvii. 204; xxxv. 160; xxxvi. 140;
    and see Trinacria

  Sicanus, xxxiii. 220; xxxv. 112

  Siculus, iv. 9; xv. 81, 187; xviii. 165; vii. 192; xxi. 187; xxiv. 142,
    314; xxviii. 287; c. m. 17. 42; xxxiii. 139, 141; xxxv. 173; xxxvi.
    84, 255

  Sidonius, v. 450; xv. 191; x. 113, 212; viii. 600; xxii. 88; xxxiii. 275

  Signifer, sign of the zodiac, i. 241; iii. 365; xvii. 120; xxi. 145;
    xxviii. 22; c. m. 51. 9: xxxiii. 102

  Silenus, xxiv. 363

  Simois, ix. 20; xxi. 264; xxxvi. 372

  Sinis, iii. 252

  Sirenes, c. m. 30. 23; xxxvi. 190, 205.
    See also Acheloides

  Sirius, iii. 241; xi. 20; xxii. 466; c. m. 25. 120; 26. 92; 30. 6; 36. 5

  Smyrna, c. m. 30. 147

  Smyrnensis, c. m. 2. title

  Socraticus, xvii. 87

  Sol, i. 1; iii. 10; vii. 131; viii. 66; xxi. 84; xxii. 419, 422, 441,
    470; xxviii. 192; xxvi. 235; c. m. 27. 45; 40. 14; 52. 34; xxxv. 44

  Solon, viii. 507

  Somnus, xv. 213

  Sophene, xviii. 220

  Spartacus, iii. 255; xxvi. 155

  Spartanus, i. 237; xvii. 153; viii. 471; xxiv. 162

  Sperchius, xxvi. 183

  Steropes, vii. 195; xxxiii. 241

  Stilicho, iii. 259, 345, 350; iv. 13; v. 4, 95, 101, 146, 171, 246, 275,
    302, 402; xv. 289, 318, 323, 379; xviii. 378, 500; xx. 126, 413, 502,
    517, 531, 544, 592; xiii. 2, 12; x. 34, 220, 302, 319; vii. 144, 162;
    viii. 432, 459, 481; xvii. 162. 265; xxi. 9, 39, 65, 132, 160, 195,
    291, 328, 385: xxii. 58, 82, 204, 231, 251, 264, 279, 316, 322, 326,
    348, 451, 476; xxiii. 21; xxiv. 64, 107, 174, 194, 213, 238, 283;
    xxviii. 100, 210, 301, 318, 320, 431, 456, 579; xxv. 15; xxvi. 14, 133,
    142, 164, 211, 267, 349, 406, 426, 453, 459, 512, 558, 588, 596, 647;
    c. m. 1. title, 2, 12; 25. 93; 30. 83, 179, 185, 207; 46. 12

  Stilichonius, x. 177

  Strymon, xv. 476; x. 310; xxvi. 178

  Stygius, iii. 62, 304; v. 167, 494; xx. 31; vii. 185; xxxiii. 120, 285;
    xxxiv. 34; xxxv. 264

  Stymphalis, xxxiv. 37

  Stymphalos, c. m. 9. 1

  Styx, v. 523; xxxiii. 22

  Suebus, xv. 37; xviii. 380, 394; vii. 28; viii. 655; xxi. 190

  Sulci, xv. 518

  Sunno, xxi. 241;
    and see Marcomeres

  Superbia, xxii. 160

  Susa, xv. 33

  Susanna, c. m. 50. 4

  Syene, c. m. 28. 19

  Sygambria, xviii. 383

  Sygambrus, xv. 373; x. 279; viii. 446; xxi. 222; xxiv. 18; xxvi. 419

  Sylla, iii. 253; xxviii. 383

  Symplegas, iii. 173; xx. 30; xxvi. 9

  Synnada, xx. 273

  Syphax, xv. 91

  Syracusius, c. m. 51. 6

  Syria, v. 33; xviii. 200, 250; xx. 571

  Syrtis, Syrtes, xxxvi. 322; xv. 143, 315; viii. 438; xxi. 257, 334;
    xxiv. 276; xxxvi. 446


  Tabraca, xviii. 410; xix. 71; xxi. 359

  Taenarius, xxxiii. 2

  Tagus, i. 51; iii. 102; xii. 32; viii. 582; xvii. 287; xxii. 230; xxiv.
    311; c. m. 30. 71, 115

  Tanais, iii. 324; vii. 205; viii. 41: xxvi. 57, 603; xxxv. 66

  Tanaquil, c. m. 30. 16

  Tantaleus, xxxv. 336

  Tantalus, v. 514; xxxv. 337

  Tarbigilus, xx. 176, 399, 432, 466

  Tarentum, xvii. 158

  Tarpeius, xv. 30; xxi. 214: xxviii. 45, 375; c. m. 4. 4

  Tarquinius, xv. 124; xviii. 449; viii. 310; xxviii. 487; c. m. 30. 156

  Tartara, iii. 122; c. m. 52. 3; xxxiii. 114; xxxv. 307, 334; xxxvi.
    64, 390

  Tartareus, v. 525; xv. 180; xx. 145; xxvi. 449; c. m. 23. 5; xxxiii.
    217; xxxv. 217; xxxvi. 79

  Tartarus, xxii. 110

  Tartesiacus, iii. 101; c. m. 40. 14

  Tartesius, x. 161

  Tauri, the tribe, xviii. 249

  Taurus, the mountain, xviii. 216; xx. 468

  Taurus, the constellation, xv. 497

  Taygetus, xvii. 291; xxiv. 259; xxvi. 193; xxxv. 244

  Tegea, xxvi. 576

  Tegeaeus, xxxiii. 89

  Telephus, c. m. 22. 46

  Tellus, c. m. 52. 19, 55, 72;
    and see Terra

  Tempe, xxvi. 181

  Temperies, xxii. 107

  Tereus, xviii. 293; xx. 363

  Terpsichore, ix. 9

  Terra, xviii. 325; c. m. 52. 1, 17, 60;
    and see Tellus

  Tesiphone, xxxiii. 40

  Tethys, i. 35; iii. 132; v. 148; xviii. 392; vii. 58; viii. 597; xvii.
    50; xxii. 252; xxvi. 335; c. m. 27. 16; xxxiv. 45; xxxv. 46; xxxvi. 320

  Teutonicus, xviii. 406; xxvi. 292

  Thales, xvii. 71 (note)

  Thalia, x. 237; xvi. 2; xxv. 2; c. m. 41. 14

  Thaumantis, xxxvi. 1.
    See also Iris

  Thebae, xv. 287; xviii. 291; xx. 522; viii. 132; xxiv. 163.
    See also Dircaeus, Cadmus

  Thebanus, c. m. 27. 91

  Thecla, c. m. 50. 10

  Themis, ii. 14; xxxiii. 107, 219

  Theodorus, Flavius Manlius Th., xvi. title; xvii. 14, 173; c. m. 21.
    title

  Theodosius, the Great, iii. 51; xv. 216; xxii. 52, 422; c. m. 30. 98;
    his father, xv. 216; xxii. 422

  Thermantia, sister of Serena, c. m. 30. 118, 186;
    daughter of Stilicho, x. 339; xxii. 359

  Thermodontiacus, xxxv. 66

  Thermopylae, xxvi. 188

  Thero, xxiv. 250, 309

  Theseus, iii. 107

  Thessalia, v. 179; c. m. 47. 6; xxxv. 179

  Thessalicus, iii. 174; x. 19

  Thessalis, xx. 201; xxvi. 237

  Thessalonica, v. 280

  Thessalus, v. 43; viii. 543; xxvi. 182; iii. 146; c. m. 30. 13

  Thetis, xi. 7; ix. 22; x. 175; c. m. 52. 118; xxxiii. 150

  Thomas, Saint, c. m. 50. 5

  Thrace, viii. 179, 475; xxi. 21, 107

  Thracius, xv. 476; xx. 104; x. 234; xxi. 132; xxviii. 473; xxvi. 337;
    c. m. 30. 207; 31. 2; xxxiv. 10, 49

  Thrax, iii. 338; v. 45, 291; xx. 147, 247, 412; xxviii. 107, 483; xxvi.
    165, 537

  Threicius, viii. 525; xxvi. 171, 574; c. m. 31. 33

  Thybrinus, xxviii. 182; c. m. 30. 117;
    and see Tiberinus

  Thybris, i. 226; xviii. 436, 447; xx. 127; xii. 17; viii. 578; xvii.
    200; xxii. 189; xxiv. 93; xxviii. 12, 365, 425, 486, 520, 641; xxvi.
    505, 578; xxxv. 178;
    and see Tiberis

  Thyestes, iii. 84; xviii. 289

  Thyesteus, i. 171; xxxvi. 388

  Thyestiades = Agamemnon, xxviii. 113

  Thyle, v. 240; vii. 53; viii. 32; xxiv. 156; xxvi. 204

  Thyni, xx. 247

  Tiberinus, i. 209; xviii. 404; xxiv. 173;
    and see Thybrinus

  Tiberis, i. 98;
    and see Thybris

  Ticinus, xxviii. 196

  Tigranes, xxi. 370

  Tigris, iii. 90; xviii. 196; xx. 484; x. 224; viii. 43, 316; xxi. 53;
    xxviii. 86, 415; c. m. 27. 83

  Timavus, vii. 120; xxviii. 197; xxvi. 562

  Timor, iii. 34

  Tingi, xv. 160

  Tiphys, xxvi. 4, 11

  Tiresias, xviii. 315

  Tirynthius, xxxiv. 49

  Titan, Titanes, i. 94; v. 338, 524; x. 114; xxii. 450; xxviii. 169; c. m.
    27. 90; 28. 33; 31. 28; 52. 2, 28; xxxiii. 66; xxxv. 49; xxxvi. 182

  Titanius, c. m. 27. 7; xxxiii. 44

  Tityos, v. 515; vii. 160; c. m. 52. 25; xxxv. 338

  Tomarus, xxvi. 18

  Tomi, c. m. 25. 70

  Tonans = Iuppiter, i. 128; xv. 26, 467; xviii. 160; xx. 293; ix. 11; x.
    112; vii. 132; viii. 134, 209; xvii. 290; xxii. 437; xxiv. 232; xxviii.
    44, 349; c. m. 22. 39; 27. 81; 29. 53; xxxiv. 38; xxxv. 76, 367; xxxvi.
    134, 183

  Torquatus, xviii. 452; viii. 403

  Traianus, viii. 316; xxi. 193; c. m. 30. 56;
    and see Aelius, Ulpius

  Tranquilli. See Pii

  Trebia, xxiv. 145; xxvi. 387

  Trinacria, xv. 457; xxvi. 220; c. m. 17. 43; xxxiii. 142, 191; xxxv. 186;
    xxxvi. 119

  Trinacrius, xxxvi. 288

  Triones, xx. 238; vii. 205; viii. 429, 474; xxi. 217; xxii. 458; xxvi.
    169; c. m. 52. 11; xxxiii. 102

  Triptolemus, xxxiii. 12

  Triton, xix. 67; x. 129, 137, 180; viii. 36; xxviii. 378; c. m. 30. 127;
    xxi. 252

  Tritonia, xv. 129; xviii. 324; xx. 396; xxii. 332; xxiv. 168; xxxv. 21;
    xxxvi. 286;
    and see Minerva

  Tritonius, c. m. 52. 91

  Trivia, x. 236; xvii. 292; xxviii. 328; c. m. 30. 141; xxxv. 27;
    and see Diana

  Troas, xx. 405

  Troia, xviii. 291

  Troianus, xviii. 328;
    and see Priamus

  Tullus, xv. 254

  Turnus, xxi. 97

  Tuscus, xxviii. 183; xxii. 273

  Tydides, xxviii. 470;
    and see Diomedes

  Typhoeus, vii. 159; xxvii. 17; xxvi. 63; c. m. 52. 32

  Typhoius, xxxvi. 183

  Typhon, xxxv. 22

  Tyrius, xv. 520; iii. 207; xv. 327; xviii. 422; xiv 26; vii. 15; viii.
    140; xxi. 79, 318, 344; xxiii. 9; xxiv. 179; c. m. 4. 5; 27. 20; 48. 8

  Tyrrhenum, xxi. 333

  Tyrrhenus, xv. 455, 482; xvii. 204; xxiv. 356; xxviii. 485; xxxiii. 152;
    xxxvi. 185


  Ufens, i. 257

  Ulixes, iii. 124; c. m. 30. 145;
    see also Ithacus, Laërtius

  Ulpius, viii. 19; xxviii. 646;
    and see Traianus

  Uranië, xvii. 274

  Uranius, c. m. 43. 4

  Urbs, xxvi. 255

  Ursa, constellation, xxii. 459; xxvi. 135; c. m. 40. 16


  Valens, xxi. 37; xxvi. 610

  Valentinian II., viii. 75 (note)

  Vandalicus, xxvi. 415

  Varanes, xx. 476 (note)

  Veii, xv. 107

  Venetus, xii. 7; xxviii. 193

  Venus, v. 486; xv. 182, 450; xviii. 345, 468; xix. 60; xi. 16; xiv. 2,
    12; x. 54, 65, 74, 99, 152, 171, 184, 241; vii. 165; viii. 265; xxii.
    354: c. m. 8. 6; 11. 3; 25. 1, 15, 39, 119; 29. 23, 26, 44; 31. 9; 44.
    6; 52. 40; xxxiii. 215, 226, 229; xxxv. 12, 266; xxxvi. 220, 281, 433;
    and see Cytherea, etc.

  Vergilius, c. m. 23. 15;
    and see Maro and Mantua

  Verona, xxviii. 201; c. m. 20. 17

  Veronensis, c. m. 20. title

  Vesevus, xxxvi. 184

  Vesta, xv. 129; xxiv. 169

  Vestalis, xviii. 329

  Victoria, xxiii. 19; xxiv. 204; xxviii. 597, 653

  Vindelicus, xxvi. 365

  Vindex, viii. 613

  Virbius, xi. 17; xxvi. 440

  Virgo = Justice, xvii. 132;
    the star, xxii. 465

  Virtus, iii. 52; xvii. 1; xxii. 162

  Visi, xxi. 94

  Voluptas, x. 82

  Vulcanius, xxvi. 17; xxxiii. 172

  Vulcanus, c. m. 52. 86.
    See also Lemnius, Mulciber, etc.

  Vulturnus, i. 256


  Xanthus, viii. 557; c. m. 46. 9

  Xerxes, v. 120


  Zephyrus, i. 101, 218; v. 101; xv. 526; xx. 95; xii. 44; x. 61; viii.
    649; xxiv. 252; xxviii. 476; xxvi. 58; c. m. 27. 21; 30. 115; xxxiii.
    186; xxxv. 73, 288; xxxvi. 3, 266


                            END OF VOL. II

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End of Project Gutenberg's Claudian, volume 2 (of 2), by Claudius Claudianus